


Sweet Moony

by Rem_and_T



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, No Slash, Remus Lupin Needs a Hug, remus is hogwarts librarian, sirius works for hogwarts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-04
Updated: 2019-06-09
Packaged: 2020-02-18 14:35:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 23,233
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18701560
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rem_and_T/pseuds/Rem_and_T
Summary: On his way to the Great Hall, Remus glanced at the witch’s picture attached to the file he had just received but neglected to read. The name sounded familiar and the cheeky way the young woman smiled at the camera and the manner in which she held her head seemed reminiscent of someone he knew. He could not quite put his finger on it but she looked like-- He blinked twice to be sure he was not hallucinating; her hair had just changed colour! They were mousy brown one second and had turned pink the next! Was she… a metamorphmagus?





	1. Chapter 1

It was complete and utter chaos in the Potters' residence. Young Harry, who had recently turned eleven that month, had woken up his parents as soon as sunlight had pierced through the curtains of his red and gold painted room. He had hurriedly pushed his round glasses up his nose and jumped out of his bed to run towards the largest of the bedrooms at the end of the corridor. He could hear his father snoring. As soon as he reached for the door to his parents' room, he squealed merrily for them to hurry up downstairs.

  
The dark-haired boy walked to the left side of the bed where an equally dark-haired man was sleeping. Rectangular shaped glasses were threatening to fall down the bedside table. A picture of a dancing couple was standing beside the glasses. Harry threw a look at it and smiled before returning his attention to the task at hand: waking his father.

  
'Come one, Dad,' the boy complained while pulling on his father's hand.

  
'Just a few more minutes, prongslet,' James Potter replied sleepily.

  
It was a desperate situation and so Harry turned sharply towards his mother. He grinned when he saw she was awake and already trying to wipe the sleepiness out of her eyes.

  
'Mum, please,' he urged her. 'Let's go make breakfast so we can already drive to King's Cross Station! My suitcase is ready. I just need to eat, take a bath and add my toiletry bag to my case.'

  
In spite of her still sleep-fogged mind, Lily Potter could not resist smiling upon noticing her son's imploring green eyes. She warily exited the warm bed sheets and nudged her husband who let out a groan.

  
'Alright, Harry,' she decided. 'You dress the table for me while I try to force your lazy dad out of the bed.'

  
The dark-haired boy enthusiastically nodded and showed her his newly acquired wand. But Lily shook her head before reminding him he was not allowed to do magic outside of school. Harry shrugged and disappeared from view.

  
She put on her dressing gown and turned to James who had finally decided to straighten up and sit in their bed. His naturally tousled hair was sticking up in every way and he put on his glasses before focusing his eyes on her face. She could swear she could see tears threatening to escape the corner of his eyes behind his glasses. She pulled him to her and they hugged.

  
'Feeling nostalgic?' she murmured to him tenderly.

  
He sighed. “More than you could ever imagine.”

  
They pulled apart and he stood up from the bed to stretch his relaxed muscles. She watched him with amusement shining in her own green eyes while she accioed an elastic tie from the bathroom to take care of her mid-length auburn hair.

  
'I hope he has fun and that nothing will untoward will happen,' James said. 'You know since that night... He was just a baby...'

  
'We did what we had to do and everything turned out well. Dumbledore will protect him and our friends will be there too. Nobody can harm him,' she declared. 'In any case, I'm sure he'll easily make friends,' Lily added.

  
'... and I hope he'll manage some mischief, he's half-Marauder after all,' James replied with a proud smirk.

  
'James Potter, don't you dare giving him any ideas,' his wife waved a finger in his direction.  
'Don't worry, Moony and Padfoot'll keep him in line.'

  
'I'm sure Remus will be able to... but do you really expect Sirius to be a good influence on our son's behaviour?'

  
James offered her a knowing grin and she knew it was hopeless. She shook her head and slipped her feet into a pair of comfortable socks that her husband had given her the previous Christmas. They had tiny deer printed on them.

 

\---***---***---***---***---***

 

About two hours later, the Potters were arriving at the station. Over his suit, James Potter had put on his Auror robes and his wife had doned a new cloak she had purchased a week ago. Harry had insisted on wanting to put on his Hogwarts uniform but his parents had convinced him to wait for when he would be nearer to the school. He had therefore decided on dressing with a simple button -up shirt and khaki pants.

  
Harry had obliged his mother by accepting to try and tame his hair. It had been difficult but they had arrived to an bearable compromise. James had laughed at his son’s grimace but had immediately choke on his tea when his wife had attempted to cast the same hair taming spell on his own unruly locks.

  
Once at the station, James fetched a baggage trolley for his son to install the traditional and gigantic Hogwarts luggage on it. Harry was holding on to the cage of his new feathery companion Hagrid had personally delivered him on his birthday. Hedwig, the snow-white owl, had fallen asleep in the car during the ride to the train station.

  
Lily was looking around the busy platforms, trying to spot any familiar faces she might recognise from her own school days. She was also hoping to catch Molly and Arthur Weasley before they crossed to Platform 9 ¾ with their children. It had been a while since the red-haired couple had dropped by their house. She remembered having met the little girl Ginny. Molly had always wished for a daughter and her wishes had been granted five sons later.

  
The Potters had last seen the Weasleys no less then two years ago. She hoped for Molly’s sake that the twins had learnt to behave themselves. James had been greatly amused by their facetiousness but Lily had barely contained herself when they had accidentally transfigured one of her favourite tea cups into enormous cockroaches. She could still remember Arthur’s face growing hot with embarrassment when his wife had blamed him for his carelessness. The twins had stolen his wand to accomplish their prank.

  
Harry helped his father hoist the heavy luggage on the trolley and positioned Hedwig’s cage on top of it. He asked his father to let him push his own trolley and so the small family walked briskly towards the intersection between platforms 9 and 10.  
Lily and Harry were about to make the walk through the wall when a familiar low voice stopped them in their momentum. Harry jumpily turned around and spotted a tall and fashionable man standing a few feet away from them. He suddenly abandoned his trolley to his parents care and ran up to the man with dark curly hair falling to his shoulders. The eleven-year old tightly wrapped his arms around the newcomer’s waist who exasperated Lily by ruffling the well-combed hair.

‘Sirius!’ Harry exclaimed. ‘I didn’t know you would come too!’

  
‘Well, I can’t miss my godson’s first crossing of the platform, can I?’ Sirius Black chuckled.

‘It’s not every day a young man gets to see the Hogwarts Express for the first time, eh?’

In the meantime, James and Lily had brought over the trolley and when Harry finally let go of his godfather, the adults greeted each other. Sirius took in the happy couple faces and noticed the pride in his friends’ eyes when they glanced to their son. They had gone through so much during their only son’s first years. The Daily Prophet had been horrible to them and Sirius could not blame them for their protective nature.

  
As the years passed, the story of the boy-who-lived had been forgotten and the only reminder of the events was a thin and jagged scar on Harry’s forehead. Sirius had to squint to even notice it. During the last decade, his godson had unsurprisingly grown to become an exact physical replica of James, but with his mother’s eyes.

  
‘Prongs, mate, you still look good!’

  
‘Never as handsome as you, old dog!’

James replied with a pat on his friend’s shoulder.

  
‘Lily, you’re as beautiful as ever,’ Sirius kissed her gently on the cheek. ‘I’ll never get why you finally agreed to marry that git!’

  
Sirius barely avoided getting punched on the arm by his old school pal. Both men started laughing like they were fourteen again. Their playful display of friendly affection was brought to an abrupt halt when a third man joined the group.

  
He was slightly smaller than Sirius and his sandy brown hair was scattered with a few grey strands. His face was naturally pale, but to his friends', his exhaustion was obvious. His deep green eyes took in the small group and he looked glad to join them.

  
Lily’s smile widened and she walked towards him. She hugged him to her and straightened his shabby clothes before pushing his floppy fringe from his forehead. To Sirius and James’ amusement, the tips of his ears turned pink.

  
‘Remus!’ Lily said while bringing him over to the group. ‘I wasn’t sure if you were still planning on boarding the train this year. Sirius told us last month that you had accepted to commute with him to Hogwarts.’

‘And risk getting killed because of his horrible driving habits?’ Remus teased. ‘I might be a Marauder, but I’m the less crazy of all of us.’

While James and Remus shook hands, Harry’s father noticed the new silvery scars peppered on his friend’s pale face. The older ones were fading already.

  
‘How are you doing, Harry?’ Remus asked kindly. ‘Are you nervous at all?’

‘I guess I’m more excited than nervous. I can’t wait to finally see Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall.’ Harry let out in a breath. ‘I want to learn all there is to know about magic. I want to meet Professor Snape also, Mum says he’s great!’

'Hear that, Moony?' Sirius elbowed the tired looking man besides him. 'The boy can’t wait to meet Snivellus.'

Remus avoided the bait by shaking his head and shoving his hands deep into his pockets. Lily however, threw a warning look to a sniggering Sirius. She then returned her attention to her son.

‘You will learn all about magic very soon, young man,’ she told him. ‘Let’s get you to platform 9 ¾ so you can settle in on-board.’  
The four adults walked along the boy who could just barely hold in his excitement.

‘I want to go first!’ the boy claimed to the four adults after having regained his place behind the trolley.

Sirius and Remus let the family positioned themselves in front of the brick wall.  
‘But I’ll wait for you two to join us on the other side.’ Harry declared to the men standing nearby.

‘Padfoot and I will follow you, laddie,’ Remus reassured him.

Lily grasped Hedwig’s cage with one hand to keep it from tumbling down during the passage, she laid the other on her boy’s shoulders. She felt her husband put his arm around them and noticed that he too, was holding on to the trolley. All three Potters held their heads high, facing the wall where a magical world was Harry’s to discover. Just before they started walking towards the barrier, James murmured ‘Get ready, Harry, your adventure is just beginning.’

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is more Remus centric, because he is the sweetest.

****On the other side of the barrier, on Platform 9 ¾, there were hundreds of parents escorting their children to the majestic magical train. The multiple voices of the busy witches and wizards made Remus’ oversensitive hearing buzz. He was tempted to cast a silencing spell around himself, but instead decided against it. He ran a nervous hand through his hair and focused on loosening his grip on his wand. He turned his attention back to his companions.

Lily and James were hugging their son one more time before leaving him to the care of his very thrilled godfather. After Harry sworn to his parents that he would write to them as much as possible, Sirius put a hand on his godson’s shoulder and pushed him gently towards the nearest car door. Remus soon followed after having himself received a hug from Lily and a pat on the back from James.  

While they were boarding the train and despite Sirius’ protests, Harry insisted on being on his own. He wanted to make friends early on and did not want his godfather or his uncle around. He assured them he still loved them, but they were adults and they were both working for the school. Sirius had rolled his eyes dramatically, but he understood the motivation behind his godson’s decision. It would not do to be seen as being familiar with grown-ups who ate at the professors' table. 

The dark curly haired man made certain that their friend’s only son secured himself a seat in a cabin. Remus helped Harry hanging his owl's cage on a hook above the car’s window. Sirius made the boy promise to call for him if need be, after which the men left him so he could wave at his parents from the open window.  

The long-time friends then navigated their way towards the last car of the train and avoided most of the agitation. They were forced to duck twice to avoid being hit in the head by magical flying paper planes. Sirius noticed how his tired friend kept his back slightly bent and how his head was hanging low. He could only guess how upsetting the high-pitched voices from the children meeting their school companions after the summer vacation affected him.  

The Marauders almost bumped into a red-haired boy who was still waving to his parents while holding a plump rat in his hand. Sirius was following Remus to a cabin situated in the last car of the train when his friend abruptly stopped walking. He collided straight into his back.  

‘Merlin’s beard, Moony!’ he exclaimed and rubbed his nose. ‘Why did you stop?’ 

‘Hang on, Pads,’ the sandy-haired man softly replied.  

Remus kneeled to pick up a large book off the floor before handing it back to its owner who piled it back up on the other novels she was carrying. Sirius then heard him saying: ‘There you go, young lady.’ 

The small bushy-haired girl observed the scars on Remus' face, then smiled and demurely thanked him.  She walked past Sirius to catch up with a boy talking to an apathetic croaking toad contained in a metal cage. The two first-years both vanished into a nearby empty compartment.  

The adults started walking again towards the end carriage. Sirius remembered his friend telling him about the arrangements with the Hogwarts Express staff. Headmaster Dumbledore had asked on Remus's behalf that a compartment was kept under lock so the young man could have privacy to sleep during the long voyage to Scotland. It would certainly have been harder to do so while being surrounded with over enthusiastic schoolchildren.  

A few weeks back, Sirius had insisted that his friend agree to commute with him to Hogwarts. Even after a lot of arguing on Padfoot’s part, Remus had declared he still favoured the train over his brand-new Muggle sports car. Sirius had muttered about his friend being a bore to which Remus had pretended to hit him over the head with the book he was perusing. 

Later during the day, upon receiving an owl from James, Sirius decided he would board the Hogwarts Express with Remus so he could be there for Harry’s first journey through the country. So far, he did not regret his choice. He was glad he had the chance to be present for his godson’s first ride onboard the magical train. He also would use the opportunity to question Remus on his health, a particular subject that had him worried lately.  

A few minutes later, the two men reached the only compartment under lock. It was situated at the far end of the car and most of the cabins nearby were used by prefects and head boys and girls. They were relieved at this thought because and did not expect too much chaos over the trip to Hogwarts.  

Sirius had not been back on the train since his seventh year at the witchcraft and wizardry school. In Remus’ case, this year marked the fifth time he boarded the train as an adult. After his graduation from Hogwarts, he had tried finding a steady job, but because of his condition, he could not afford to remain to an employer’s service too long. He refused to risk being found out only to be ostracised more than he was already. He had thus been changing jobs more than he had fingers to count them on.  

That period of life had been tough on him, he was a proud man and stubbornly refused financial help from his friends. However, one night, after having barely escaping a hex from one of his colleagues who had discovered the reason to his monthly disappearances, he landed on Sirius’ doorstep, soaked to the bone. It was raining cats and dogs outside and he had not had time to pack his suitcase before apparating at his friend’s house.  

He had decided against going to ask for the Potters’ help. Like most of the wizarding world, Remus knew they were already struggling with their share of challenges with all that was happening around Harry’s first year of existence. He did not want to be a burden to them. even though he was thankful for being able to stay at Grimmauld Place, he was insistent on repaying Sirius’ generous hospitality. He would not accept charity even coming from a long-time friend and maintained his position on wanting to make some galleons to pay a rent or at least his own food. Nonetheless, for the following months, Sirius had been pleased to welcome Moony in his home, even if he knew he was on a constant look out for an interesting job opportunity.  

One day, as Remus was preparing for an interview with a Muggle coffee shop owner, an owl came through the kitchen window. It dropped a letter on the table, narrowly avoiding his cup of tea. The missive was bearing his name written in a very familiar calligraphy reminiscent of his teenager years. 

One way or the other, Albus Dumbledore had apparently heard of his precarious living arrangements and had decided to offer his old pupil a job as the school’s librarian. It was the dream job he had entertained to have when he was still a student at Hogwarts. While Sirius had fancied himself a great business man – and he was proficient at it, and while James had become an Auror – just as he always wished, Remus had silently thought about how great it would be to simply be allowed to work in a library. Strolling along innumerable aisles filled with all kinds of novels and grimoires. Free access to literature, discovering new stories and learning academic level material always appealed to him. Since then, he had been on Hogwarts payroll. 

‘So, Moony,’ Sirius shook him out his daydreaming as they shuffled inside the cabin. ‘How did you enjoy meeting Prongs and Lily?’ 

Remus put away his luggage on top of his bench and shrugged off his robe, revealing a worn-down gold and red jumper. He then sat near the window opposite his friend and a tiny grin spread on his lips as he looked at Sirius who had pulled off his boots and propped his feet on the table situated in the middle of the cabin.  

‘They were looking so happy,’ Remus sighed. ‘And being seeing Harry boarding the Express for the first time reminded me of us back in the days, when we all met for the first time. I think it’s you who slid open the glass door and asked me if there were any free seats in the cabin.’ He shook his head and his fringe boyishly fell over his brow. ‘Of course, nobody had dared...’ 

Padfoot threw him a pointed look, warning him not to complete his sentence. He knew that self-deprecation was second nature in Remus’ case and Sirius cursed the people responsible for making him think so low of himself. 

‘I am still grateful that I ended up sliding your door open. It was probably fate that brought all the future Marauders together. Without you, school would not have been as amusing and nice as it was,’ Sirius replied with a knowing nod. 

Remus lowered his eyes to his scratched hands propped on the only bag he was carrying with him today. He swiftly returned raised his head to throw a mischievous grin at his cabin companion. 

‘Do you remember that time when Prongs stunned Peter’s chocolate frog and when he–’ 

‘—opened it the frog jumped on his face?’ Sirius chuckled. ‘Classic, James.’ 

Remus frowned and a fleeting look of worry darkened his features for an instant before a smile reappeared. 

‘I wonder what happened to Peter. He never contacted us after we left school. Do you think he finally got to travel the world as he said he would?’ 

‘I can assure you that Wormtail never left this country. He’s too much of a scaredy-cat if you ask me,’ Sirius quirked an eyebrow. ‘I wonder why the Sorting Hat put him in Gryffindor.’ 

‘You thought you were going to end up in Slytherin. But deep down, the Sorting Hat knew you belonged in Gryffindor. It’s probably the same for him,’ Remus replied softly. 

The dark-haired man scowled before shaking his head as if he were disappointed with his answer. 

‘And you should have been a Ravenclaw, with all your bookishness and level-headedness.’  

It was Remus’ turn to chuckle. The two men fell into a companionable silence until they heard the train whistle. Sirius noticed how his friend’s eyes twinkled despite his exhaustion. The ghost of a smile was still hanging on Moony’s lips. It was obvious that the departure brought him back good memories. He was looking out the window car, trying to make out the silhouettes of Harry’s parents as the train made its way out of the station. At last, they were on their way to the vast green mountains leading to Hogwarts.  

Sirius felt his own heart squeeze with nostalgy as he pictured four eleven-year-old boys joyfully chatting about magic while devouring mountains of tooth rotting candy. He remembered James’ facetious hazel eyes behind his rectangular glasses as he had waited impatiently for Peter to open up the tiny blue and gold box. The smaller boy of the four had shrieked in panic as the bewitched chocolate animal jumped in his face. Sirius had burst out laughing and Remus had hesitantly smiled, still unsure whether he was accepted by the three other boys. James had then winked at Remus as Peter was still trying to remove the chocolate frog from his face. This conniving signal had confirmed to Remus that he was considered as a part of the group. He had then earnestly begun laughing. 

Sirius was pulled back from his reverie when the sound of a wheeled cart approached their cabin. The trolley witch appeared in his field of vision barely a minute later. Before she could ask them if they needed anything, with a flick of his wand, the dark-haired man made a liquorice wand, a few boxes of Bertie Botts every flavour beans and two boxes of chocolate frogs fly to their table. The witch shook her head in reproach as she put her fists to her hips.  

‘Mister Black, I clearly remember telling you each year when you were still a boy; hand me the galleons first and then you can have your candy,’ she scolded as if Sirius were still a first-year student.  

Sirius offered her an unabashed smile but the older lady remained immune to his charm. She pocketed the gold and turned her attention to Remus who was frantically patting down the front of his robes looking for spare change. Being a real chocolate enthusiast, he did not want to miss on a chance to fill up his suitcase with the delicious candy bars.   

‘Would you like anything, Mister Lupin?’  

Remus let out a frustrated groan when his robes turned out empty but found a golden coin in his rumple trousers pocket and showed it to the witch.  

‘How much chocolate can I get with this?’ he inquired with a disappointed expression on his pale face. 

The trolley lady summoned three long chocolate bars from the inside of her magically enlarge trolley. 

‘Normally it would get you two,’ she declared with a stern look that quickly transformed into a knowing smile. ‘I remember you, even as a boy, being a loyal customer, and I will therefore give you an extra bar.’ 

Remus blushed and muttered his thanks before putting away two of his three newly acquired chocolate candy bars in his suitcase. His fondness of chocolate seemed to have made an impression on the elderly witch. She rolled away to the next cabin but not before shaking her finger at Sirius who was already devouring the liquorice wand.  

‘As for you, Sirius Black, next time I want to see your money before you accio anything off my trolley.’ 

The culprit shrugged off her comment and kept on munching his candy. Once she had moved on to other customers, he magically made the cabin door slide close without a sound. He then watched as his friend tore open the wrapping from the single chocolate bar he had put on the table.  

‘I’m guessing the three bars you just bought won’t make it to your room at Hogwarts,’ Sirius asked. 

‘Why would you say that?’ Remus replied innocently. 

‘Just like old times.’ 

 


	3. Chapter 3

The prefects, Head boys and Head girls opened the car doors immediately after the train pulled in the arrival platform. Seconds later, students bustled around the station and first-years grouped in front of Hagrid, the gamekeeper. Remus spotted Harry amongst the new pupils. He was accompanied by a red-haired boy and the bushy-haired girl whose book he had picked up earlier. Sirius nudged him in the side and indicated he was going to say goodbye to Harry before he boarded the tiny ships that traditionally sailed the new students to Hogwarts.

‘Do you think it’s wise? Should you not leave him with the other children and instead try and talk to him later on? Maybe after the Sorting ceremony?’ Remus suggested.

Sirius was about to agree to his friend’s idea when he noticed a blond boy approaching Harry and his new companions. 

‘Wait a minute... Do my eyes deceive me or is this not Lucius’ son?’

Remus turned around to search the crowd in front of them and his gaze landed upon the lad Padfoot was pointing him. 

‘Malfoy has a son?’ he voiced in surprise. 

‘Do you think he is as wise as his father?’ Sirius sniggered. ‘I bet you his paternal thought him all about Pure-Bloods and...’

‘Padfoot!’ Remus chastised him. ‘Don’t be so mean, he’s only a boy, he might not share his father’s views on—’

The Malfoy boy knocked over the pile of books the girl standing near Harry was holding. 

‘Look!’ Sirius interrupted him. ‘Did you see? Oh, I’m sure he’s like his father alright. Chip off the ol’ block!’

The men witnessed the red-head boy helping the girl picking up her novels and after which she timidly thanked him. They saw Harry approaching the blond boy and asking him to apologise to his friend. Malfoy’s son only smirked and crossed his arms on his chest while two slightly taller first-years were taking position besides him. Remus sensed Sirius tense and heard him suck in a deep breath. Before he could stop him, Padfoot sprung to action and walked towards the group. Remus hurried after his companion, nervous about the outcoming of the situation. 

The surrounding students made way and the two adults navigated their way through the crowd easily. Remus muttered embarrassed apologies while his friend simply pushed through the boys and girls who worried about what was happening. 

‘You should ask forgiveness for your action, Draco Malfoy, or...’ Harry said to the blond boy and reaching for his wand at the same time.

‘Or what, Potter?’ the antagonist spat back. ‘Will you throw forbidden curses like your mummy and daddy did eleven years ago?’

Heads suddenly turned towards Harry and Remus could hear voices whispering about the Potter family being supporters of dark magic. Some children tried getting a closer look at Harry. Most of them had only heard the name pronounced worriedly by their parents as they grew up. 

The Potter boy’s name had become legendary since Lily and James had defended him more than ten years ago against one of the darkest wizards the world had ever known. Nobody except a few close friends knew how they had managed to repulse Voldemort. Some rumours, spread by the Daily Prophet, amongst other newspapers, had talked about them resorting to the use of dark magic. They spoke about the baby having become cursed because of their actions. Some witches and wizards had declared the jagged scar Harry was sporting on his forehead as further proof of these claims.  

Remus and Sirius were aware that Lily and James continuously tried to protect their son from those rumours. It was one of the reasons why they had been so reluctant at first to let him attend Hogwarts. They were anxious about him becoming the target of ill-meaning sons and daughters of ignorant magical families. Lily had once confided in Remus that she would have preferred Harry to be home-schooled despite Dumbledore’s promise. The Headmaster had written to her that he would keep a close eye on her son once he would be studying at Hogwarts. Remus had tried soothing her worries by telling her she should trust the Headmaster; the old man had done the same thing for a certain young Lupin years ago. 

A sudden sparkling light took everyone by surprise. It even forced Draco and Harry to look up from their argument and find out the origin of the spell. Apparently, it was emanating from a very pink umbrella held by a very enormous man. 

‘Hagrid!’ Harry shouted in astonishment. 

‘I can see you made an interestin’ frien’ ’ere, Harry,’ the half-giant stated.

‘Well, he is no friend of mine. And he did upset, Hermione. I think he should apologise to her.’

‘No way I’m apologising,’ eructed Malfoy in indignation.

Hagrid turned to the blond boy and quirked an eyebrow. He ran his hand over his thick thorny beard and took a step nearer to the recalcitrant student. 

‘It’s no way to start a school year, young man,’ the gamekeeper plainly declared. 

‘If you’re planning on frightening me, it won’t work. My father is...’

Sirius stepped into the conversation, effectively shutting up the young insolent. Remus held his breath, worried Padfoot might say or do something that would upset Harry’s chances at making any more friends. 

‘Your father is not here right now,’ Sirius claimed. ‘I can confirm without doubt that he would probably either drop to his knees and pray Hagrid forgive him for being rude or simply run for his life.’  

Some children began giggling and Harry  smiled proudly at his godfather. Remus was torn between laughing or smacking him over the head. But Malfoy’s son proved to be more quick-tempered than his father. He angrily raised his finger to Sirius and without any restraint, repeated words that he had no doubt heard his father tell his mother. 

‘Aren’t you the pariah of the Black family?’ he viciously hissed. ‘My father is ashamed of being related to you, even if it’s only through marriage.’

Sirius was about to retort when Remus intervened and pulled him back from the group. Draco Malfoy narrowed his eyes at the silvery scars that marred the side of the sandy-haired man’s face and incredulously raised an eyebrow. 

‘And you must be the librarian. My father also warned me to stay away from you. Pure-bloods should not mix with your sort.’

Remus tried to ignore the uncalled-for comment and remained impassive. He focused on Harry’s face, bothered that he might decipher his foe’s meaning. He had implored Lily and James that his lycanthropy not be addressed until the boy was old enough to properly understand the ramifications of the illness. The last thing he wanted was to be shunned by the spectacle-wearing child. 

So far, Harry had always seen his uncle with scars on his face. One time, in his charming childish innocence he had compared them to the one on his forehead. He had never asked how, or why Remus would regularly come see his mother and ask her for dittany to heal fresh bleeding marks on his face and arms. Harry's simple acceptance was one of the reasons Remus was so fond of him.

‘You should do well to heed your father’s advice,’ Sirius addressed Draco Malfoy. ‘Don’t try going to the library, you might stumble on dark material such as books.’ With an eerie voice, he added: ‘And you might  _ learn _ something.’

For a second time, the crowd erupted in timid giggles and even Hagrid had to hide his amusement. The gamekeeper took advantage of the lightened mood to motion for the first-years to follow him. He progressively led them to the nearby banks where multiple rowing boats were awaiting their passengers.

‘Come on then, Rem,’ Sirius squeezed his friend’s shoulder. ‘Don’t be so moody. Lighten up! We do not want to be late for the Sorting ceremony.’

Remus turned his green eyes to meet Sirius’ grey ones. A small wrinkle was apparent between his eyebrows, betraying his crippling self-doubt.

‘Do you think that Malfoy boy is going to tell Harry?’ he inquired. 

‘Tell him what?’ Sirius frowned. ‘That you’re a  _ dark creature of the night _ ?’

‘It is not funny, Sirius,’ he sighed. ‘What if Harry were to despise me?’

‘Harry wouldn’t, he’s a great kid.’

‘But what if he were to be upset with my not telling him earlier?’

Sirius forced his friend to look at him. He put his hands on Remus’ shoulders and took in his forlorn expression.

‘Listen, Moony. He is Lily and James’ son. They both accept you as you are. You are a great man. Everyone who knows you, loves you. You might be quiet and sometimes a bit stubborn, but you are not defined by your condition.’

Sirius gently squeezed his friend’s shoulders and they started walking again towards the nearest empty thestral-pulled carriage. Remus fell into step next to him and they settled face-to-face on the benches. 

The thestrals effortlessly began pulling the carriage in direction of the giant iron school gate. While Sirius brushed his fingers through his dark locks, Remus clung to his suitcase, lost in his thoughts.

‘Also, when you’ll know when you’re ready to tell him. Don’t fret too much over the issue,’ Sirius insisted.

‘Thank you, Padfoot,’ Remus muttered slightly embarrassed about having left his insecurity take over. 

‘No worries, mate,’ the black-haired man smiled. ‘I can’t wait to stuff my face at that banquet.’

‘Erm, Sirius…’

‘Eh?’

‘You really shouldn’t bully students.’


	4. Chapter 4

Mr Argus Filch was shaking an angry finger at two third year students, the Weasley twins, when Remus and Sirius arrived in front of the large wooden doors behind which were waiting impatient and hungry young witches and wizards. The old caretaker was threatening the Gryffindor twins with getting them hung by their thumbs in the dungeons. He spluttered about the twins having tried to lure his cat into a magical cage to, according to Mr. Filch, hurt her.

‘What is going on here?’ Sirius’ deep voice boomed in the almost empty corridor.

The old squib snorted and turned to face the two Marauders. 

‘These… these....’ he spurted and pointed at the Weasley brothers who were pictures of innocence. ‘These… fools tried to harm my cat.’ He wiped his nose with the sleeve of his dirty shirt. ‘Again!’

Fred and George Weasley adopted indignant expressions and turned to face the two newly arrived Hogwarts staff members. Sirius had difficulty keeping a straight face and Remus sensed he was about to burst in laughters if he were to open his mouth once more. The school’s librarian decided to take it upon himself to intervene and diplomatically try to avoid the escalation of the conflict. Thus, Remus began by gently asking the boys to state their purposes and why they were not seated at Gryffindor’s table inside the Great Hall. Fred explained they had accidentally stumbled onto Mrs. Norris while heading back to the Sorting Ceremony. George added that they had run up to their Houses’ tower to retrieve something important from their luggage.

‘This does not explain why you have your wands out and I can begin to understand why Mr. Filch would be upset with you bothering his cat,’ Remus noted.

‘We never meant to hurt Mrs. Norris!’ one of the boys protested. ‘We only…’

‘… wanted to see how she would look if we shaved her and if we would be able to transfigure her into a rat…’ completed the other boy with a lopsided grin. 

The cat owner groaned and kneeled to let Mrs. Norris climb up his back. She seated herself on his left shoulder and waited for her master to straighten up.

‘I demand excuses!’ the caretaker exclaimed still visibly offended. 

Remus nodded in agreement and pushed a hand through the hair that was falling on his forehead. He turned to the boys and tilted his head expecting them to agree and offer their apologies to the old man. Sirius kept trying not to guffaw and winked at the teenagers. Fred and George took a step forwards after having put away their wands and looked at the squib. 

‘We solemnly swear that…’ started one of the Weasley brothers.

‘...we are awfully sorry about the misunderstanding,’ finished the other boy. 

Remus quirked an eyebrow at them. If Fred took notice and swallowed uncomfortably, George on the other hand did not feel concerned.

‘We will stop bothering Mrs. Norris,’ he said. 

Mr. Filch left the twins to the care of the Hogwarts’ librarian and his friend and he disappeared through a hidden door nearby. Sirius moved to crack open one of the heavy wooden doors and ushered the two third-years inside instructing them to swiftly take a seat with their fellow house members.

‘Doesn’t it bring you back memories, Moony?’ Sirius sighed after the two mischievous Gryffindors were out of sight. 

‘One particular nightly expedition to the restricted section in the library under an invisible cloak, maybe?’ Remus offered a tongue-in-cheek recollection.

‘These were the good times. Having to behave properly at all times is so boring,’ Sirius complained. ‘I don’t know how you manage to keep silent all day.’

‘I’m the Hogwarts’ librarian, Padfoot. I have to lead by example; I can’t go around the aisles screaming my head off like a lunatic,’ Remus chuckled. 

‘What about I send you a howler during the exams week?’

‘Don’t you dare, Sirius Black.’

‘You’re no fun, Rem,’ the dark-haired man huffed. ‘Let’s head to the Hall before Hagrid eats all the buffet or Snivellus poisons it.’ 

They made their way inside the Great Hall and reached the main table situated in front of the four rows formed by the seating students. In front of the professors and staff table was a small wooden bench on which Professor McGonagall had put the Sorting Hat. The first-years were already gathered around the stage and waiting for the professor to begin calling their names.

There were two free seats next to one another at the main table, at the right was Severus Snape and at the left was Hagrid. Sirius wisely decided not to sit next to Snape, unless he wanted to get into an argument in front of everyone in the room. He headed towards the gamekeeper who attempted to give him more space when he sat. It only resulted in him jolting the whole table and making Professor Flitwick squeak when he was almost pushed down his chair. 

In the meanwhile, Remus took a seat next to Severus but only earned himself an annoyed scowl from the potion master. The librarian felt the new students were already examining him. It was not unusual to be the centre of attention whenever he attended a public event. He knew his scars were not ordinary and people always looked at them while they thought he was not aware. 

When he was younger, it made him self-conscious of his appearance and it often made him uncomfortable to the point that he would try escaping their sneaky glances by avoiding social events. Over time, he had grown relatively accustomed to being a public curiosity, but it still troubled him as he believed himself to be less attractive than the average man. 

He had long ago made a cross on his dream of having a romantic relationship with any woman because of both his lycanthropy and its consequences on his body. He had never voiced his concerns on the topic to any of his friends even though he had been greatly tempted to do so with Lily. He thought she might have understood him, but in the end he had decided not to burden her with his thoughts on the fact that he did not consider himself relationship material.

Remus tried to concentrate on other things then the deafening shrills of enthusiasm and curious looks from the teenagers. The heavy volume of noise bothered him a lot because of his heightened hearing. It was his lycanthropy that amplified every noise to a certain level and high notes always made him shudder. Sirius tried distracting him by commenting that Harry’s turn would be sorted soon. As if on cue, Minerva McGonagall called his name.

The spectacle-wearing boy was encouraged with a pat on the back from his red-headed friend to walk to the Sorting Hat. It seemed for a single instant that everyone in the room had gone silent. The Headmaster edged closer on his golden throne, and Sirius sat straighter. People had long been saying that the Sorting Hat would determine whether the boy had been negatively affected by the events that happened ten years ago. Some rumours kept alive by the  _ Daily Prophet _ claimed that the sorting would determine if Harry’s heart had been preserved from the deathly curse that supposedly rebounded on him that night. 

Remus heard Sirius murmur him that he was convinced his godson would end up in either Gryffindor or Hufflepuff. He did not even entertain the possibility of Harry being a Slytherin. In fact, he could not bear the idea of Snape being his Head of House. 

The Sorting Hat was placed on Harry’s tousled hair and remained silent for at least one whole minute. Remus could swear he heard his nephew whisper to the Hat. The boy had once told him that he wanted to make his parents proud by being sorted in Gryffindor house. The godfather had replied that it did not matter what decision the Hat would make. The important thing was that he made friends and enjoyed his years at Hogwarts. 

After a while, the Hat seemed ready to announce its verdict. Harry was visibly shaking out of nervousness. 

‘Alright… better be Gryffindor!’ the Sorting Hat shouted in a deep voice. 

Albus Dumbledore was the first one to clap, followed closely by Professor McGonagall and everyone in Gryffindor house. Sirius clasped his hand on his Remus’ arm and winked at Harry who was now sitting amongst his fellow house members, next to the bushy-haired girl from the train. 

‘I could have sworn he would not have ended up in Slytherin,’ Padfoot declared loudly to be sure Snape would hear him.

The potions master leaned over Remus and locked eyes with Sirius. 

‘Knowing who’s his father, I assure you he’ll be up to no good; and so I am relieved that he’ll be Minerva’s problem,’ Snape hissed. 

‘Don’t be so snappish, Sniv…’

A raised eyebrow from Remus interrupted Sirius before he could complete his sentence. The dark-haired man instead shook his head and raised his cup to celebrate with the professor sat next to him. Snape sat rolled his eyes and settled back in his seat, mumbling to himself before conversing with the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. 

Once the rest of the first-years was sorted in the house that would be their family for their seven academic years, the headmaster welcomed them officially and clapped in his hands to make the feast appear on the long tables. The students eagerly ate and chatted about their summer vacation. At the headmaster’s table, the teachers discussed between themselves. 

Sirius switched places with Professor McGonagall to speak with Professor Sprout. As Hogwarts head of warehouse, he was responsible for making sure every class had enough supplies as required by the course plans. He had been hired one year after Remus became librarian at the school. Dumbledore had admitted he was a gifted businessman. Sirius had not had time to contact the herbology teacher during the summer and thus needed to talk with the Head of Hufflepuff. Meanwhile, Remus smiled at Minerva McGonagall who gleefully announced him some interesting news.

‘I heard new interns are scheduled to arrive over the next week, Professor Dumbledore agreed to a new teacher internship program to be set up at Hogwarts,’ she said. ‘Apparently, Beauxbatons and Durmstrang have successfully experimented the program over the last years.’

‘I’m sure the professors will appreciate the help,’ Remus smiled before taking plunging his fork in the decadent chocolate cake in front of him. 

The transfiguration professor nodded and offered him a knowing look. ‘Not just the teacher will get to be shadowed by these eager interns. I believe your friend Sirius will also get to share his business skills with a young lady. I thrust you will be there to keep him in line,’ McGonagall declared.

‘I can’t wait to meet these trainees,’ Remus said once he had finished eating his dessert. 


	5. Chapter 5

Remus had just decided to take a break in his office from classifying the new delivery of grimmaurs when Sirius sauntered in through the open door. The dark curly-haired man laid his long body on the worn-down sofa the librarian had salvaged last year from the waiting room of the infirmary. Mrs Pomfresh had received new furniture over the last semester and she had decided to get rid of the oldest set. Some of the staff members had been welcomed to pick up any pieces they wanted. The librarian had chosen a large sofa with comfortable cushions. They had been patched up over the years but they still served their purpose.  

‘So, you know about the interns, right?’ Padfoot accioed an apple from the desk situated at the centre of the small office.

Remus intercepted the flying fruit and rubbed it against his gray jumper before sinking his teeth in it. He leaned against the wall opposite Sirius. ‘Minerva told me last night. She also mentioned something about you getting to train a business student,’ the librarian said.

Sirius smirked and abruptly sat on the couch with his elbows on his knees and his eyes twinkling. He watched his friend munching on the fruit and was relieved to notice he seemed more rested than he would have expected.

‘Actually, it is supposed to be a _she_ and I expect her to arrive today around dinner time,’ Sirius declared with a grin.

Remus frowned and rubbed his forehead, fluffing his messy fringe at the same time.

‘Padfoot, you are most certainly not allowed to flirt with the trainees,’ he warned his friend.

Sirius raised an eyebrow and shook a long finger at his fellow Marauder. ‘Mr. Moony, you are far too proper. We are allowed to have some fun now. We’re not students anymore,’ he declared.

‘You’ll end up getting the axe,’ Remus obstinately replied, still devouring the apple.

The other man waved his friend’s concerns away and stood up, waving his fingers through his shiny black hair. James Potter had once teasingly asked Padfoot whether he was using a charm to magically enhance the thickness of his hair. Sirius had shrugged off the suggestion but Remus had always had the nagging feeling there was some kind of truth behind this careless answer.

‘Anyway, I came here to tell you Dumbledore wants to meet with you today when it’s convenient.’

The sandy-brown haired man nodded, promising he would go to the headmaster’s office during the afternoon. He pulled off his robes and his tweed jacket and folded them carefully before sitting on the couch besides his friend who shook his head disapprovingly.

‘I will never understand why you’re refusing to buy new robes. You can afford it now!’ Sirius enunciated.

‘I love this tweed suit!’ protested the librarian after having rolled-up the sleeves of his button-up shirt.

‘It makes you look ten years older than you are.’

‘So?’

‘Nevermind,’ Sirius made his way to the door. ‘Don’t forget about our chess game tonight. I have to go by Rosmerta’s in Hogsmead later and so I’ll make sure to buy some firewhisky.’

Remus sighed once his friend disappeared from view. Following the Sorting ceremony, he had retired to his quarters in the wing reserved for the male staff. He had had the first good night of sleep since the end of the last school term. Professor Snape had accepted to provide him with a Sleeping Draught.

The grouchy potion master had been instructed by the headmaster to brew any mixtures the librarian would require. This agreement extended to the whole school year, and implied the complicated production of the Wolfsbane potion. Said potion was supposed to keep the wolf’s instinct from attacking Remus’ human mind during his despised transformations. So far, it had also help easing the impact of the symptoms brought by his lycanthropy.

\---***---***---***---

It was nearly dinner time when Remus finally left the library to meet with the headmaster. He encountered an enthusiastic Harry who had just had his first transfiguration class. Hedwig, his snow-white owl, was flying over his head. The red-haired boy and the bushy-haired girl from the platform incident were walking on either side of James and Lily Potter’s son. They briefly stopped when they crossed paths with the librarian.

‘Hello Uncle Remus!’ Harry joyfully called. ‘Have you met Ron and Hermione?’

‘Hi, laddie,’ Remus replied amused. He was glad the boy had already two new friends at Hogwarts. ‘I haven’t had the pleasure to be introduced yet.’

Harry looked pleased and put a hand on each of his new companions’ shoulders before gently pushing them in front of him. The girl timidly look Remus in the eyes and the boy reached for the man’s hand and shook it politely.

‘Ron Weasley,’ the redhead stated. ‘I heard about you and Mr. Black through my Mum and Dad. My brothers also went to Hogwarts. They said you were the best at helping us find what we need when the professors give us too many homeworks.’

Remus nodded and offered a lopsided grin. He identified Ron as Molly and Arthur Weasley’s youngest son. He remembered Lily and James talking about the Weasley family and how supportive they had been after the War ten years ago. Molly had invited the Potter family to spend some time at the Burrow to avoid thinking too much about the night Harry barely escape death by Voldemort’s wand.

‘My name is Hermione Granger,’ the small girl next to Ron announced. ‘My parents are Muggles and so I’ve never been amongst wizards before. But I read a lot about witchcraft and wizardry to prepare for the school year.’

The Marauder put his hands in the pockets of his trousers. ‘I am sure you will do very well here, Miss Granger. You will find that there are quite a few students here that are Muggle born too,’ he assured her with a knowing smile.

‘Uncle Remus’ mother is a Muggle,’ Harry explained. ‘His father taught him magic and his mother showed him Muggle stuff. How awesome is that?’

‘Dad holds a fascination for all that is Muggle related and Mum tries to keep him from buying too many Muggle devices,’ Ron said with a smirk. ‘Just last week, she made him--’

‘--I’m sorry boys but we have to be at the Gryffindor tower in five minutes to attend orienteering. Prefect Percy told us not to be late,’ interrupted Hermione vaguely embarrassed.

‘You should not listen to my pompous brother. He’s a real pain in the…’ Ron began.

Remus raised an eyebrow when he saw the girl elbowing the Weasley boy.

‘Brother or not, he’s a prefect, Ronald. We should listen to him,’ she scolded him.

Remus turned to Harry who seemed to be trying to keep from laughing. The three Gryffindors ended up bidding goodbye to the librarian who made them promise to come and see him if ever they struggled with homeworks. Ron and Harry nodded in by sheer politeness but Hermione nimbly shook her head to demonstrate her positive interest in his offer.

After having barely missed the staircase leading to the same level as the headmaster’s office, Remus finally stepped in front of the stone statue protecting the entrance to Dumbledore’s lair. He murmured the password and was swiftly granted passage. Having climbed up the multiple stairs necessary to reach the office, he knocked on the wooden doors and they magically opened, inviting him inside.

In front of him was situated a wide mahogany desk behind which the old headmaster was presently sitting, obviously waiting for him. Remus was positive the man had known about his impending visit and had been ready to receive him as soon as he had put his foot on the first step of the password protected staircase.

‘Remus, my dear,’ Albus Dumbledore greeted. ‘How are you settling in? Is anything amiss?’

‘Everything seems to have remained in place, headmaster. I have yet to go to the restricted section, but I would bet the books remained untouched over the summer break,’ the librarian replied with a gentle grin.

‘You must be wondering why I asked Mr. Black to send you to me.’

Remus cocked his head to the side and waited for the headmaster to offer him his thoughts.

‘I heard that Minerva told you about the new internship program candidates arriving this week.’

‘Yes,’ confirmed the younger man. ‘I was told there was the possibility of one of them coming to assist me in my daily tasks.’

‘Precisely,’ Dumbledore lightly drummed his fingers on the wooden surface of his desk. ‘Only there is this issue on which you will agree with me.’ The headmaster indicated the wide chair situated in front of his own. Remus warily sat, he had a feeling he knew where the discussion was heading. ‘Amongst the interns, there is one who’ll be shadowing you to learn how to become a school librarian and so they will follow you daily. They will notice when--’

Remus closed his eyes and exhaled deeply. This was unavoidable.

‘--I’ll be absent,’ he rubbed a tired hand across his pale face. ‘That intern will learn about my being a werewolf. I would expect them to find out, if they’re studying to become a librarian, I bet they are well-read.’

Dumbledore put his elbows on his desk and leaned his chin against one of his open palms. He squinted at Remus over his glasses. ‘That is why I asked to see you before attributing the interns to the staff members. I do not want to put you in an uncomfortable situation. I can contact their training school and ask them to reallocate the trainee elsewhere.’  

The librarian vigorously shook his head. He did not want to sabotage someone’s training just because he was cursed with his monthly illness.

‘Let them come to me when they arrived. I will explain the situation and then, if they still want to learn from me I’ll let them stay. If not, I’ll offer them the chance to get another mentor for their training. I will ask them to be discreet.’

‘Very well, Mr. Lupin. If that is what you want, I will make it happen.’

The headmaster kindly dismissed the younger man after handing him the personal file of the trainee he would mentor. Remus walked towards the exit without opening it, his mind already busy trying to figure out the best way to gently introduce the werewolf topic to the new intern.

He willed the doors to open with a non-verbal spell and was about to leave the office when the sound of the headmaster clearing his throat to get his attention stopped him.

‘Oh and Remus, before I forget,’ Albus Dumbledore called him, ‘I should tell you that from personal experience, teaching can be gratifying for both the student and the professor. Therefore, your trainee will learn from your experience and your librarian skills, and they will teach you about acceptance and confidence.’

On these enigmatic words of advice, the wise man officially dismissed his younger colleague who appeared even more distraught than before.

On his way to the Great Hall, Remus glanced at the witch’s picture attached to the file he had just received but neglected to read. The name sounded familiar and the cheeky way the young woman smiled at the camera and the manner in which she held her head seemed reminiscent of someone he knew. He could not quite put his finger on it but she looked like-- He blinked twice to be sure he was not hallucinating; her hair had just changed colour! They were mousy brown one second and had turned pink the next! Was she… a metamorphmagus?


	6. Chapter 6

Remus Lupin joined Sirius Black in the Great Hall. The school’s official buyer was deep into conversation with the Bloody Baron who looked upset. Every time he had the occasion to speak to the Slytherin ghost, Sirius made a point of avoiding to mention his brother Regulus. After he had graduated from Hogwarts, the youngest Black son had been influenced into becoming one of Voldemort’s followers together with some of his Hogwarts friends. 

The Bloody Baron, upon hearing this news ten years ago, had become genuinely depressed. When young Regulus Black was a student he had never tried to make fun of the ghost like so many of his fellow Slytherins. He had also frequently had interesting discussions on history and magic with the plumb spirit. 

After being hired by Dumbledore, Sirius had heard about his brother only a few times. He knew he had been condemned to life imprisonment after the war like most of the Death Eaters. It was rumoured that the Headmaster, on behalf of Sirius and the Bloody Baron, had testified in front of the Wizengamot to get Regulus out of prison. It was said that the young Black had been sent to a remote corner of the country where he was magically bound to stay hidden from the rest of the magical world. Sirius knew that his brother’s wand had been confiscated and broken, but he had not been allowed to visit him yet.

Remus stepped nearer to his friend who was still engrossed in conversation with the Bloody Baron. Both men remained oblivious to his presence until he interrupted them.

‘Greetings, gentlemen,’ he began softly. 

The ghost lowered his eyes from where he floated in the air and peered at the sandy-brown haired man. Sirius clapped his friend on the back as a way to acknowledge him. Remus barely kept a hold on the file he was still clutching in his fingers and tried to put it away to avoid dropping its contents on the floor. Before he could make it disappear in the magically enhanced pocket situated in the lining of his tweet jacket, Padfoot caught his wrist. He grasped the file and opened it to the picture of the librarian’s future trainee.

Sirius’ eyes widened abruptly when he recognised the face and the Bloody Baron chuckled. 

‘Is she the one being sent to you?’ Sirius wondered. ‘I mean… did she really apply for a trainee position? For the library?’ 

‘That is hilarious. I remember her from when she was still a student. She kept pranking Peeves!’ the ghost guffawed before taking his leave and disappearing through the nearest stone wall in the corridor.

The librarian’s eyebrows shot high up his forehead and he crossed his arms on his chest, waiting for his friend to hand him back the file. Sirius was still eyeing the photo attached to the candidate’s file. He rapidly read the writings on the document and finally shoved it back into Remus’ arms. 

‘That’s my baby cousin. Can’t believe she’s applying to become a librarian. Must be a mistake. They probably messed up the applications.’

‘What do you mean?’ 

‘The way I remember her, she’s the opposite of studious -- she did get good grades in school -- but she was not really into homeworks and far from being a bookworm like you.’

‘Maybe she changed. People do change over time.’

‘You can’t expect Nymphadora Tonks to change that much. She’s the clumsiest girl on Earth and she’s just too… how do I put it?’ Sirius scratched at his well-groomed stubble. ‘She’s too direct. Not enough soft-spoken. I figure she does not have the right profile to become a librarian.’

Remus opened Miss Tonks’ file to observe her picture once more and had to will his fingers to move and shut it close. This fact was not lost on his friend who thought better of it at the moment and decided to keep his thoughts to himself. The two men remained silent for a half a second before finally deciding to steer in direction of their seats in the Great Hall.

Some students were already busy eating. Most of them were sharing newly learned spells and comments on their first classes of the year. Harry was biting a chicken leg and reaching for a pumpkin juice goblet when they walked past his table. He barely shift his attention to say hi before turning back his attention to what Ron was saying about Quidditch games. Hermione had her nose buried in a book and the Marauders decided to leave them to it. 

\---***---***---***---

Remus was almost finished eating his supper when Dumbledore required the students to be quiet. The librarian quirked an eyebrow and turned to the headmaster with interest. The old man smiled to the crowd and stood tall behind his reading stand. The golden owl had spread its wings as was customary when its master was about to make a speech. 

‘Everyone,’ professor Dumbledore said, ‘Hogwarts won’t be only your house this year. It will also welcome four trainees who you will get to meet very soon.’

Students and professors alike were trying to find out who the said trainees were. Sirius was contorting himself so much that Remus was afraid he might have stiff muscles in the morning. 

‘So, without further ado, might I present to you our trainees for the year,’ two men and two women stepped forward from the side entrance on the stage where the staff ate. ‘Miss Nymphadora Tonks and Mr Charles Weasley!’

The four houses clapped to welcome the two young adults standing on the left side of the headmaster. Miss Tonks was sporting mousy brown hair and was barely reaching the man’s shoulder height. Remus realised the redhead was probably another of Molly and Arthur Weasley’s brood. Two other trainees were introduced and all four of them were shown to the four chairs that had remained unoccupied at the main table. 

Charlie Weasley walked towards the gamekeeper who looked positively beaming and Miss Tonks headed the other side of the long table. Once they were all comfortably seated next to their new mentors, the Hogwarts students started chatting again. 

On Remus’ right was Nymphadora Tonks and on his left was Sirius. Young Miss Tonks had replaced Severus Snape who had during the Sorting Ceremony sat next to Remus. The librarian now understood why the Potions Master had refused to take a seat besides him this time. 

‘So you’re Hogwarts’ famous librarian!’ the young lady exclaimed with a wide grin. ‘Wotcher! I’m Tonks!’

Remus slowly shook his new trainee’s hand and tried to avoid staring at her hair which had turned a vibrant pink. She noticed his staring and playfully changed the colour of her hair to see his reaction. He quickly ran his eyes over her face and finally realised she was still waiting for his answer. 

‘Hi I- I’m Re-re-mus Lupin,’ he stuttered like a fourth year inviting his date to the Yule ball.

‘Hi Re-re-mus Lupin.’ She had a teasing smirk on her pretty features. ‘Haven’t you ever met a metamorphmagus?’

She seemed to relish getting to see him all flustered. He struggled to regain his composure and ran a hand in his brown hair peppered with a few grey strands. It was her turn to ogle the silvery scars on his hand. Upon noticing her interest in the tiny marks on his skin, he promptly put his hand away. 

‘I have not,’ he awkwardly answered with a tense expression. He did not want to have to face her questionings during their first meeting; she obviously noticed his discomfort for she wisely dodged the subject.

‘It’s okay, most wizards aren’t accustomed to see a metamorphmagus,’ she assured. ‘You can call me Tonks.’ Before he could ask her why she did not use her first name, she continued talking. ‘I never thought I would get an internship at Hogwarts. I wasn’t really what you would call a model student back in the days,’ she explained. 

Remus opened his mouth to reply but was cut off by Sirius who had been listening to their conversation since the beginning. The dark curly haired man had scarcely  fended off a burst of laughter when his fellow Marauder had stammered. It was so unlike Moony to lose his composure. He was always so relaxed and even-tempered. That young Nymphadora Tonks had easily been able to make the tips of his ears go red was a really entertaining thought to Sirius. 

‘Howdy, dear cousin?’ Sirius exclaimed after having switched seats with the wizard sitting besides the bumbly young woman. ‘Do you remember me? Last time I saw you you were barely high as a standing Niffler!’

Nymphadora Tonks redirected her attention on the other Marauder and her eyes changed from a dull brown to match Sirius’ shiny grey. ‘Snuffles!’ the trainee opened her arms and warmly embraced her cousin. 

Seeing his friend being enveloped in the young woman’s arms made Remus’ heart skip a beat. It was silly of him to be jealous but he wished he could have been in Sirius’ place. Remus leaned over his elbow to look into Padfoot’s face. The man pretended to be offended with being called by his animagus form’ name.

‘Nymphadora, do not ever…’ he shook a long finger at her.

‘Don’t-call-me-Nymphadora!’ she replied. Her hair was quickly turning red. 

‘Hold on, young lady! I was just kidding!’ Sirius raised his hands as if surrendering. ‘Don’t hex me!’

The metamorphmagus’ hair went back to its previous shade of vibrant pixie pink. Remus smiled and toyed with the handle of his wand which was peeking from the inside pocket of his robes. Sirius caught his attention with a wave of his hand. 

‘As you can see, Remus, my baby cousin doesn’t really entertain a fondness of her given name.’ The black-haired man winked at his cousin. ‘I remember when you were still a baby, Andromeda would coo your name and try to coax out a smile when you were crying. But she would only succeed in making you get noisier.’

‘Thank you for reminding me how much I hate my name,’ she rolled her eyes. 

Remus frowned and gently touched her elbow to get her to face him. He felt his cheeks grow hot when her lips formed a impish smirk. 

‘I like your name,’ he mumbled. ‘I think it suits you very well.’ 

‘I hope you’re not taking the mickey out of me or you’ll have to find a new trainee to mentor, Mr Lupin!’ she poked him mockingly on the arm.

The librarian looked genuinely horrified at the thought and she took pity on him. Her eyes soften and she patted him on the forearm to make sure there was no misunderstanding. Sirius took the opportunity to inquire about her mother and father’s health. Andromeda and Ted Tonks were doing very well and they had accompanied her to the Platform 9 ¾ this morning. They had wished her well and had implored her not to wreak havoc on her first day. 

‘I was a very enthusiastic student back in the day. I would not dare say I could have been a Marauder like Sirius here…’ she nodded to her cousin who sighed. ‘But I did get up to some antics that some professors did not particularly appreciate…’

‘They say the quietest are usually the most naughty, right?’ Sirius interjected with a knowing smile. ‘Well, believe it or not, dear Remus here is also a Marauder. He was the brains behind the most wicked pranks. So don’t get fooled by his smooth character and his quiet voice.’

A tight smile was plastered on Moony’s face when Tonks tried to decide whether she should trust her cousin or not. The librarian did look quite easy-going even though he seemed slightly shy and uncomfortable at the moment. She knew out of personal experience that timid men tended to be the most passionate and honest once you got to know them. 

Tonks was trying to find something to say when a loud crash erupted from the other side of table. Most of the students had already left the Great Hall to study or to enjoy the few hours left before bedtime. She had not noticed that the staff members also had gradually retired to their own quarters. She instinctively investigated the source of the noise and rapidly spotted a broken teapot on the floor. Before she could make any move, she heard Remus murmur a  _ Reparo _ spell and the pot pieced itself back together and flew to the table where it had been standing previously. 

‘Thank you, Remus,’ exclaimed Hagrid in his gruff voice. ‘I don’ know ‘ow it happened! I was jus’ explainin’ Charlie ‘ere how to feed a three headed dog.’

The red-haired man seated next to the gamekeeper waved at Tonks and she stuck out her tongue at him. He replied by putting his thumbs in his ears and making a silly face to make her laugh. Remus envied the casualness with which Charlie Weasley reacted to her playfulness. Both trainees seemed to be of the same age and he dared think about them probably being involved together. It would only be normal. Nevertheless, the thought made him feel like his heart was being squeeze in his ribcage. What was happening to him?

‘Padfoot to Moony,’ Sirius used his wand to create magical sparks to blow in his friend’s troubled face and waited for him to stop daydreaming.

The librarian met his fellow Marauder’s eyes and sheepishly rub at the back of his neck . ‘Sorry, I was just…’

‘No worries, mate!’ Padfoot stood up and stretched his back in a manner reminiscent of an agile cat. ‘I think we should leave the trainees to their own devices and go play this game of chess you promised me.’ 

Remus absently agreed. Tonks nodded, sending her shoulder-length pink hair flying in every way. Charlie had left Hagrid’s side and the half-giant had bid him goodnight before heading towards his thatched house. The Weasley boy approached Sirius and Remus and the three men shook hands. 

‘I’m going to Hogsmeade, wanna come with me, Tonks?’ the redhead asked with a smile as bright as the sun. 

The girl yawned deeply and acquiesced to her friend’s suggestion despite seeming ready to fall asleep on the spot. She put her arm around Charlie’s waist and let her head fall against his shoulder. He gently rubbed her back and was ready to escort her out of the Great Hall when Remus called her name.

‘Miss Tonks!’ 

She turned back to her new mentor and yawned again. ‘Yes, Mr. Lupin?’

‘Don’t be late tomorrow! I’ll be at the library at 9am.’

‘Fine, I’ll make sure not to drink myself into oblivion tonight,’ she teased. 

She kissed her cousin on the cheek and took the hand Charlie was offering her.

‘Oh and Miss Tonks,’ Remus gathered up the courage to request one more thing. ‘Call me Remus, please.’

‘Sure thing,’ she paused and eyed him carefully. ‘Remus.’


	7. Chapter 7

Sirius gathered two glasses from one of the two desks in his quarters. He waved over a newly bought bottle of firewhiskey and sat in front of his friend. Remus had pulled a chair from the table and was deftly preparing the wizards chess board. His mind was still replaying the meeting with his new trainee. Sirius decided not to distract him yet and instead poured generous portions of the alcoholic beverage in both their goblets. He took a sip and analysed his friend’s restless facial features.

‘Penny for your thoughts?’ Sirius took another sip of firewhiskey and let it run down his parched throat.

The question startled Remus who dropped two pieces and picked them up from the floor, trying to regain his composure. He remained silent while carefully choosing a pawn of each colour from the chess set and hiding them from the Animagus’ sight to switch them in his palms.

‘I thought you would be getting an intern as well,’ Remus finally piped up and nodded towards his closed fists.

Sirius shrugged. ‘I was sure I would be training one, but apparently it won’t happen this year.’ He pointed at his friend’s left hand and turned the chess board around when it revealed a black piece. ‘Why do you always get the first move?’ he lamented.

‘Cheer good luck,’ Remus concentrated and made his first move. ‘Miss Tonks seems like a nice young lady.’

The dark haired man narrowed his eyes at his opponent and ordered a knight over the row of black pawns. The magical chess piece obeyed its master and slowly took position at the centre of the board.

‘I noticed you seemed quite interested in my young cousin,’ Sirius began with a tiny smile.

‘She has a very strong personality,’ Remus replied annoyed at having been found out. ‘I am sure she’ll also be a quick learner,’ he clumsily tried to change the subject.

‘I know for a fact she is a capable woman. Andromeda used to write to me about how assertive her daughter is. I think she had a knack for getting into trouble in Hogwarts,’ he mischievously grinned. ‘Like her cousin.’

Remus remained quiet for a while and drank from his cup. He waved at the board and one of his bishops diagonally crossed to his opponent’s side before swiping down a rook. The other Marauder groaned and raked a hand through his curly hair.

‘I daresay I am quite surprised she applied for a librarian’s traineeship. I would have thought her more interested in a job that could provide her with more excitement,’ Padfoot admitted after filling his glass to the rim from the firewhiskey bottle.

‘As I told you earlier,’ Remus sighed. ‘People do change. And working at the library can be challenging.’ The librarian examined the chessboard and plastered a victorious grin on his tired face. ‘Checkmate!’

The black king dramatically let his miniature sword fall on the board to announce his defeat. The white pieces remaining on the other side of the stone platform cheered their victory. The game was magically put away and the firewhiskey bottle ended up on the table.

‘Alright! Now that the game’s over, you will answer some questions, mate,’ Sirius crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in his chair.

‘You lost on purpose!’ protested his opponent with a scowl.

‘I have something to ask you and I need you focused.’

Remus squirmed in his own seat, he was not looking forward to this. Last time his school friend had had this expression on his face, it had lasted at least thirty minutes until he had been forced to admit he had a crush on one of Lily’s friend. Sirius had questioned him without showing any sign of tiring and Remus was afraid the same thing was going to happen tonight. His friend seemed to enjoy his discomfort.

‘So… let’s go straight to the point,’ Sirius pretended to examine his fingernails. ‘Do you fancy my baby cousin?’

‘What? No! Of course not! I-- I just met her tonight. No…,’ Remus stammered and a blush covered his pale cheeks.

‘You’re such a smooth liar, ickle Remmy,’ Sirius teased with a laugh.

‘No! I mean-- you know…,’ Moony kept protesting and pulled at a stray thread from his grey jumper before standing up and circling around the room. ‘How old is she? She’s about ten years younger than me, and therefore way too young. Anyway, she’s probably already matched with that Weasley boy.’

‘Rem! Calm down, it was just a question,’ Sirius yawned widely and stared back at his troubled friend. ‘She’s not a student, and she’s clearly of age.’ The librarian raised an eyebrow to express his uncertainty. ‘And we’re not that old.’

Remus shrugged and sat back down dejectedly. ‘It’s probably best not to get any idea about this. She’s my trainee for the coming year and that’s all.’ He rubbed at the silvery scar that extended from his left cheek, crossed the bridge of his nose and ended in the middle of his right cheek. ‘Also, I shouldn’t entertain this kind of thoughts. I’ve only met her tonight. Hypothetically, why would she even consider me? I’m cursed and I’m scarred inside and out. She’s best off with this younger lad.’

‘You can’t keep discarding possibilities to get yourself a girlfriend, mate,’ Sirius put his hands on his friend’s shoulders to steady him. ‘Back in school there were scores of girls ready to throw themselves at you if you were to ask them out. Stop thinking so low of yourself. You’re better than most available wizards out there. You deserve to be happy.’

‘No woman in their right mind would want to spend their life with a _werewolf_. Be serious!’ the librarian disengaged himself from Padfoot’s grasp and brushed his fringe from his eyes.

‘I am being serious, my friend. I think it’s time you let yourself be loved by a lady deserving of your affection,’ Sirius emptied his glass for the second time. ‘And whether you like it or not, I’m going to help you do exactly that.’

\---***---***---***---

The following morning was a terrible morning for Remus J. Lupin. The alarm clock he normally kept on his nightstand failed to ring on time. Thus, instead of getting ready to go downstairs and have his breakfast with the rest of his peers, he was still in his bed twenty minutes past his regular work schedule. All night long he had been plagued by familiar nightmares that had him tossing and turning in his bed. The constant banging of knuckles against his wooden bedroom door finally achieved in rousing him from his restless sleep.

He sat up in his bed, hair tousled and dark purple rings under his pale green eyes. He shook his head hoping it would help clearing his mind. The visitor behind his door was growing impatient and the noise kept getting louder and it made him wince.

‘Hold on! I’m coming!’ Remus yawned. He stepped out of his bed and barely caught himself before tripping on the rug beneath his bare feet. He straightened his pyjamas and tried to flatten his brown hair.

‘What happened?’ exclaimed Sirius once the door was open.

The librarian’s previous night chess partner pushed him back inside the room and put his hands on his hips. Sirius narrowed his eyes at the state of wakefulness of his friend. After a quick assessment, the Animagus turned to the only dresser in the room and waved his wand at the drawers. One of Remus’ tweed suit along with a white shirt flew to the messy bed and laid itself at the feet of the piece of furniture.

‘Did you have _the_ nightmares again?’

‘No.’

‘Liar.’

‘No, I did not,’ Remus sighed deeply. ‘And you don’t need to choose my clothes for the day.’

Sirius put away his wand and insisted that his friend use the adjacent bathroom to clean up before heading down to the library. The other man picked up a pair of underpants and readied to take a quick shower.

‘We’ve been friends for almost twenty years now. You can’t lie to me,’ Padfoot explained loudly to make sure the librarian could hear him over the sound of the running water.

Sirius stood in front of the only mirror in the room and took his time smoothing down any wrinkles on his robes.

‘I don’t want to talk about my nightmares,’ Remus turned off the tap and walked back to his bed. He had changed into his customary brown tweed suit. His hair was carefully parted on the side for the moment, but it would only last until it dried. And then his fringe would flop back in his eyes and hide the thin scars along his hairline.

‘You should talk to someone about them. Back in school you used to tell me all about your recurring nightmares and now that we’re back to Hogwarts you don’t say anything about them anymore,’ Sirius said disapprovingly. ‘If you won’t talk to me, maybe tell James or Lily, or a shrink.’

‘No shrink wants to hear about a _werewolf’s_ nightmares.’ The green eyed man loosely knotted his tie around his neck and pocketed his wand. He accepted the help from his friend to put on his robes. ‘And I don’t want to bother my only friends with my whining.’

‘It’s for your own good, mate. If you open up a bit, maybe it’ll help you in your quest to find the perfect lady.’

‘I feel like this is some kind of project that you’ve just made up.’

‘Oh stop grumbling, you prat,’ Sirius followed him outside his quarters and watched as he charmed the door to keep the intruders outside. ‘And do hurry up, will you?’

The librarian put his hands in the pockets of his brown trousers and intended on going by the kitchens to get something to eat before starting his day.

‘You don’t want to be late for your first day of training!’ Sirius enthusiastically stated.

They parted ways outside the Hogwarts staff quarters. The school’s official buyer had to meet with the potions master to get a complete list of ingredients needed for the first semester. He had promised to be present to receive a delivery of Mandragora for the first-years’ herbology class. In the afternoon, he was required to meet with the Flying instructor to assess whether there was need for new brooms or not this year.

Remus assured his fellow Marauder that he would meet him for lunch outside. Sirius made his swear he would try to bring his trainee along. The librarian had rolled his eyes before stepping on the neared moving staircase.

\---***---***---***---

Surprisingly, the library was quite packed at this time of day. Most of the boys and girls ignored him when he walked in. It was almost ten o’clock when Remus unlocked the door to his office situated at the back of the main alley. There were a few sixth and seventh year students sitting at the long tables and studying thick textbooks. Some were quietly dictating notes to their self-writing quill and others were busy exchanging study tips. The librarian noticed two or three couples holding hands under the tables and pretending to concentrate on writing the first week’s essays.

Once he was out of sight in his tiny office, Remus took off his robes and loosened his tie before undoing the first button of his shirt. He was feeling feverish today. Maybe he was coming down with something. Most likely it was due to the fast approaching full-moon.

He took a quick look at his wristwatch and raised an eyebrow when he realised he was one hour late. He had told his trainee to be there at nine and there was no sign of her. He had expected her to maybe leave a note under his door, or to send him an owl. But it seemed like Miss Tonks was not a punctual young woman. The Marauder sighed disappointingly and took place behind his desk to sort out a stack of paper he had discarded tiredly yesterday. They were orders for new muggle novels he had picked out of the list he had made during the summer.

Three years ago, when Dumbledore had hired him as the new librarian, Remus had insisted in garnishing a new section of the extensive library with books from Muggle authors. He had pointed out that future witches and wizards should learn about non-magical literature and that it was important to broaden their minds. There was one argument he had not shared with the Headmaster. Some of the school’s governors might have campaigned against the idea of integrating Muggle literature, but in the end, he had gain the approval of the majority of them.

Back in the days, when he was still a young boy, his parents used to buy him books to keep away the boredom. He was not allowed to play with other children and he had found an escape thanks to those gifts. When his parents died, he was left penniless and could not afford to buy himself novels and he had missed on many new stories. Until he was offered his position at Hogwarts, he had contented himself with sneaking into public libraries and borrowing books that he had already read years ago. Now that he was in his early thirties, he was trying to catch up on the reading he had wanted to do while he was unemployed and had to switch jobs almost every two months.

Remus was finishing up classifying the last bulky pile of documents when a soft knock startled him. He nearly dropped the cup of tea that he had just heated for a second time. He sheepishly straightened up the papers on his desk and looked at the newcomer. He was pleasantly surprised to recognise Nymphadora Tonks. She was sporting a wide smile and her now purple hair were shining in the dim light of the office.

‘Hi, Remus,’ she plopped herself down on his worn out couch.

‘Good morning, Miss Tonks,’ he replied. The corners of his mouth twitched carefully until he openly grinned back at her. He could not resist her contagious good mood.

‘I was worried you might be angry with me for not being here on time,’ she declared. ‘My alarm clock did not do its job this morning.’

Remus nodded but decided not to tell about his own misadventure. He did not want her to think he was slob and that he was disorganised. He felt a bit of a hypocrite but he tried to camouflage his guilt behind a wry smile. He invited her to come near him at his desk and read the last form that he had just filled. She leaned against the corner of the table and brushed back a lock of hair that had fallen on her cheek.

‘I can’t decide what hair length I should adopt today,’ she frowned.

She wrinkled her nose and closed her eyes for a second and Remus saw her shoulder-length purple mane shrink until it reached only the middle of her neck. It would have made any other young lady look boyish, but in her case it highlighted her delicate features. His heart skipped a beat or two and when he suddenly realised he had been staring impolitely for far too long, he immediately let his eyes fall to the paper in his hands. Only the faded pink tinged along his cheeks betrayed what he was thinking.

‘Erm… well, this is erm…’ he tried collect his thoughts to form coherent sentences.

‘So this is an order sheet, right?’ she saved him from further embarrassment by gently taking the form from his pale hands.

‘Yes, it’s the one you use if you want to buy Muggle novels,’ he kept his eyes down and pretended to be searching for his fountain pen. ‘If you read it carefully you’ll see this one has been approved by the official school’s buyer.’

‘School buyer?’

‘Sirius is the one who has to approve any orders the staff wants to put in. He verifies that the demand does not exceed the budget each department gets at the beginning of each semester.’

‘And once he has approved the spending you can send the form to the seller,’ she guessed correctly. ‘What else do you have to do today, Mr. Librarian?’

‘I suppose you might already be familiar with the many aisles of the library?’ he inquired. She nodded. ‘Are you as acquainted with the restricted section?’

Her eyes seemed to glint. ‘Students are not allowed to go there without the staff’s permission,’ she began. ‘But my dear cousin might have mentioned that I was quite reckless back in my student years.’

Remus crossed his arms over his chest and expectantly waited for her to complete her sentence. She searched his green eyes as if to gauge whether she should tell him about how foolhardy she had been as a teen.

‘Charlie once dared me to break into the restricted section back in our third year.’

‘Charlie Weasley?’ Remus tilted his head on the side, reminding her of a sad puppy. His now dry hair had flopped back on his forehead and he blowed it from his eyes with an annoyed huff.

‘We used to be thick as thieves back in Hogwarts,’ she sighed. ‘But since he developed a passion for magical beasts, and especially dragons, I feel like we’re growing more apart than ever.’

The librarian secretly rejoiced in hearing the strain in her relationship with her best friend was weaker than it used to be. Maybe Sirius was right after all. He discarded all speculations on any potential training this young lady could have on his future. He opened one of the drawers and reached inside to grab an old-fashioned key that could unlock the restricted section metal gate.

‘Should I leave my bag here?’ Tonks pointed towards a large backpack she had deposited to the floor upon entering the room.

‘You can, this door will be locked and no students should have access to it,’ he let her walk before him and closed the door behind them.

 

He answered her questions about the way the books were organised on the shelves. It turned out that she knew where most subjects were situated and he was happily surprised to witness her answer a few of the students’ questions. She was even familiar with some of the novels from the Muggle section. It would make a good conversation starter, Remus reflected.

They breezed through the Dark Creatures aisle and were forced to make a detour in the Magical Inventions aisle because of the heavy volume of students crowding the small hallway. Upon turning the end corner of the corridor, Hermione suddenly came crashing in Tonks who was in the lead. The girl had her nose deep in a large history book and Remus recognised it as an alchemy manual. She apologised profusely but the librarian in training was not troubled at all, she only looked amused.

‘Apparently, I’m not the only klutz at Hogwarts,’ Tonks chuckled once the first year had scuttled off.

‘She’s a sweet girl,’ Remus responded. ‘She’s a friend of Harry’s. He’s Sirius’ godson, and also happens to be my nephew. Sort of.’

He had piqued her curiosity and she now wanted to learn more about her mentor. The young woman swivelled on her heels and wondered if she should try and coax some information out of the tired-looking man in front of her. Maybe asking about his family was a good way of establishing a connection. She watched him closely as he unlocked the sturdy grid protecting the restricted section from unallowed entrances. Once he had no more use of the iron casted key he put it in his trousers pocket. He let her cross to the other side of the gate and closed the grid behind him.

Tonks chewed on her lip for a short while before taking a leap and deciding to ask about his nephew. ‘So, you said Sirius’ godson was your nephew. Who is he exactly? Is he your sister or your brother’s son?’ She hoped he would not find her questions too personal.

She scrutinised his profile and detected a small crease near his mouth, betraying the tension that her query had created in him. He pointed to the nearest row of leather-bound books and waved her over. He explained her how important it was that these publications remained chained to the shelf. Students were not allowed to read these and the staff were asked to register before even opening them. Remus started touching the chains to ensure they were sufficiently strong and that did not need immediate repair. Tonks learned that besides hunting down students that were out of bed after regular hours, Mr. Filch the caretaker was responsible for replacing or polishing the chains.

After having verified that all the books on the shelf were in good condition, Remus guided her through another row of mysterious looking magical works. While they searched for any imperfection in either the bolts or the chains of the books, he responded to her previous question. She had lost hope that he would give her any answer and was relieved to notice he did not think her impudent.

‘Harry is Lily and James Potter’s son,’ he commenced. His voice sounded hoarse. He must have been mulling over her question during the last minutes. ‘You probably know of their name.’

‘Yes, I’ve heard of their story and that they were grappling with a dark wizard, Voldemort,’ she nodded and adopted a neutral face.

There had been a lot of discourse over the subject ten years ago. The wizarding world could still be divided into two clans; the sceptics, and the believers. The second group was the only one who believed what happened between that family and Voldemort during that terrible night. They also were the ones convinced that Harry’s parents did not turn to dark magic to fight the dark wizard. They believed them victims and not dark arts adepts, as the sceptics thought.

‘Well, James and I were friends at school and that’s where he met Lily. The love of his life, as he kept telling Sirius, Peter and I,’ Remus chuckled. ‘He got what he wanted and they married after Hogwarts. They had Harry soon after.’

‘Are you blood-related?’ she frowned. ‘I mean, is the boy’s mother your sister?’

The librarian chewed on the inside of his cheek. ‘No, Sirius was made godfather and he was frequently at their houses while the boy was growing up. I had to leave the country when Harry was still a toddler because I…’

He looked as if he had almost let slip something against his will. Had she not been so close, Tonks would not have noticed how his pale green eyes had turned stormy. He lowered his head and scratched an itch at the base of his neck. He then ran a hand through his grey-speckled hair and offered her a sad smile that tug at her heartstrings.

‘Anyway, few years later, I came back to England and Lily told Harry that I was like his uncle because I was so close to his father back in school. We were like brothers. Not bound by blood but by friendship. And the boy kept calling me his uncle after that.’

Tonks nodded and stored this new information to analyse it later. She was curious by nature and she enjoyed asking questions. However, she was perceptive enough to understand that her mentor would rather not feel investigated every day they would spend together for her training. For the rest of her first day as a librarian trainee, she chose to keep the next conversations topics light.


	8. Chapter 8

September was nearing its end and the relationship between Remus J. Lupin and Nymphadora Tonks was very cordial. It was exactly the type of relationship that should be maintained between a keen trainee and a patient mentor. Contrary to Sirius Black’s hopes, his friend had been either too stubborn or too shy to dare trying to get it moving towards something more. It was probably a mix of the two. School life was progressing as expected; first exams were coming soon and anxious students busily prepared for them.

Tonks had witnessed her mentor helping struggling pupils with their homeworks. It was not in the librarian’s job description, but he did it with ease and clearly enjoyed himself. The satisfaction in his eyes each time a boy or a girl grasped the meaning of their assignments was his reward. The young woman thought he looked very much like a studious professor and the passionate manner in which he helped the teenagers only endeared him to her.

The metamorphmagus had worriedly noticed that Remus seemed to be growing more exhausted as the days went by. Nevertheless he kept spending time tutoring the few students that asked for his help. Small Hermione was a recurring pupil of his and Tonks frequently caught them discussing serious topics far beyond the abilities of a first year. Harry’s friend seemed so engaged in their discussions. Remus would often distractedly run his scarred hand through his hair each time it fell in his eyes, before adding one more argument to the conversation.

\---***---***---***---

Less than four days before the end of the month, Remus and Tonks were working in his office when a plumb owl came crashing on his desk. The trainee scooted over to peak at the square piece of parchment the librarian took off the bird’s leg. She circled around the desk and positioned herself behind her mentor and patted him on the shoulder once she was done reading. The sandy haired man’s face was knotted in a tight smile. 

‘Will you go?’ she asked him. 

‘Will you?’ he answered tit for tat. 

She shrugged. It had been a long time since she had the time to go to a Quidditch game. Last time she had played dated back to when she was a seventh year Hufflepuff. She could still remember the moment when she thought Charlie Weasley would finally kiss her, just before she mounted her broom and took position in the pitch. Nothing happened and the disappointment had distracted her during the game. Her team’s hopes in earning the Quidditch cup had died that day, as had her hopes of having anything more than a friendly relationship with the red-haired boy. 

‘Sirius and James used to drag me along to watch them play every game when we were still in school,’ Remus broke her out of her depressing memory. ‘I’ve always found Quidditch to be quite dangerous.’

She watched him choose a blank piece of parchment from the first drawer of his desk. He picked up his discarded fountain pen and began scribbling his response to Sirius. Her cousin had learned his godson had been chosen to be Gryffindor’s new seeker and he was thrilled to invite them both to come along and cheer for Harry’s team next weekend. 

‘He must be the youngest seeker in a century!’ Tonks exclaimed. ‘I know for a fact they do not accept first years in Quidditch teams. We’re barely three weeks in the beginning of the school year and he’s already named official member of the Gryffindor team. That’s amazing.’

‘He’s an wonderful lad. I bet he’ll be as good as his father at this sport, but still, is it not too early to make the team?’

‘I wonder if his parents will be there,’ Tonks reflected out loud. ‘When I played my first game, mum insisted she wanted to be there. And dad told me later he had never seen Andromeda Black cry out so loud in public.’

‘My mum accompanied me to my Muggle chess tournaments, I was eight,’ her mentor beamed fondly at the recollection. ‘She gave me a gigantic Honeydukes chocolate bar when I finished second the first time I played. She brought me to these tournaments until I had to stop because Dumbledore came to my house and… I mean, until I was my parents sent me to Hogwarts.’

Tonks did not seem to note the slip of the tongue Remus had done once more. He did not want to tell her about how he got into Hogwarts. Not yet. 

‘Does your mother knows she made a chocoholic of you?’ she punctuated her laugh with a friendly pat on his back. 

He reveled in her touch and could still feel the heat of her palm on his cardigan when she removed it from his shoulder. He closed his eyes for a short time to remember the sensation and opened them back only to spot two large chocolate brown eyes watching him attentively. He replied that his mother had been giving him this brand of chocolate only on special occasions when he was a kid  Since she died, he had kept buying the same brand and it never failed to remind him of her each time he popped a chocolate square in his mouth. 

The librarian folded the little rectangular on which he had written his answer after blotting the surplus of ink from the parchment. She was mesmerised by the rapidity with which he manipulated the paper. He attached the response to the sleepy owl standing on a pile of books nearby. The grey bird flew out of the room creating a flurry of order forms in the office. Tonks cleaned up the mess with an efficient movement of her wand. She giggled as Remus tried to smooth down his fringe that had been ruffled by the previous storm of order sheets.

They returned to their work and remained quiet until the librarian suggested they take a pause. Remus offered that they go to Hogsmeade to make a change and Tonks readily accepted the proposition. 

\---***---***---***---

‘So you played Quidditch?’ Remus asked once they were seated on a bench seat at the Three Broomsticks. 

‘I did! You would think I’m too clumsy to ride a broom but I can be a surprisingly talented flyer. It always fascinated my parents,’ she took a sip of her butterbeer and wiped the foam from her upper lip. ‘Why did you not play? Are you afraid of heights?’

Remus shrugged and commented on the dangers of falling off your broom or taking a bludger in the face. She replied by telling him of the exhilarating feeling of freedom that overtook her every time she had the occasion to fly. 

‘James had the bad habit of trying to make the most dim-witted acrobacies to get Lily’s attention. Sirius would only cheer him on and Peter would laugh along,’ the librarian said. ‘One day, he tried flying through one of the largest scoring hoops on the pitch and bumped his head on the metallic rim.’

‘Did he fell?’ Tonks worried. ‘Did he lose control of his broom?’ She had witnessed this kind of incident during training.

‘No, he did not fell. But he did lose all control of his broom because he was too dizzy to regain his balance,’ Remus put his chin in his palm after sipping from the giant mug in his hand.

‘But how did he land without hurting injuring himself further?’

‘Rem cast an  _ arresto momentum _ spell and save Prongs’ life!’ a smooth voice joined the conversation. 

Tonks turned to see her cousin carrying three large glasses full of butterbeer. She greeted him and scooted along the bench to leave him some space to sit. Remus frowned and inquired about Sirius’ presence in Three Broomsticks. The newcomer justified his intrusion by announcing he intended on trying to strike a trading agreement with Madam Rosmerta to sell butterbeer during Quidditch matches. 

‘That would be brilliant!’ Tonks encouraged him. ‘I wonder why they’re not already selling firewhiskey as well.’

‘Probably because most spectators are underage,’ Remus intervened with a teasing smile. ‘It would not do to influence young minds to drink alcohol too soon.’

‘Like you’re one to talk!’ Sirius guffawed. He stretched his arms over his head and linked his fingers behind his head. 

‘Don’t,’ hissed the librarian with a raised eyebrow.

‘What is it?’ Tonks enthusiastically encouraged her cousin to expose his thought.

Remus threw his fellow Marauder a warning look and drunk down in one go the remaining of his beverage. Sirius pointedly ignored his friend. 

‘Back in our fourth year, around this time James, Remus and Peter were playing dares. I was therefore dared by James to provide us with four butterbeer bottles from the Three Broomsticks.’

‘Did you?’ Tonks grinned. She could already guess the answer; he cousin was very resourceful and he was used to getting his way.

‘He charmed the newest employee and she handed him the bottles in exchange for a kiss and the promise of a date,’ Remus rolled his eyes. 

‘What was your dare, Remus?’ she said puzzled. 

‘Peter dared him to drink all four bottles,’ Sirius stated.

‘And did you?’

Remus’ shoulders dropped and he avoided her eyes before admitting with a quiet voice that he had. He indeed had respected the rules of the game and managed to empty all the bottles. Sirius sniggered and added to Tonks benefit that her mentor had had to spend the remainder of the day in the boys’ lavatory. He had been so sick that even Moaning Myrtle had abandoned him to his fate. The three other Marauders had later found out that Moony had been sent to the infirmary where he had been chewed out by Mrs. Pomfrey for being irresponsible. 

‘And remember that at that time, he was a Gryffindor prefect!’ Sirius clarified. ‘Even Lily was angry with you, was she not?’

The man sporting silvery scars on his pale face groaned and buried his head in his arms to avoid their amused expressions. Padfoot slid one of the new butterbeer mugs towards him and insisted on him taking a gulp. Wash down the embarrassment, James Potter would have said had he been around the table at the moment.  

‘So are you going to be there next weekend? Will you come at Harry’s first match?’ Sirius changed the subject. He had a pride smile plastered on his face. 

The godfather had waited a long time before Lily agreed to allow him to show Harry how to ride a broom. His father had offered him a toy broom when he was still a toddler and Sirius had wanted to buy him a real one for his tenth birthday but the boy’s mother had refused. She had insisted that her son should wait to be at Hogwarts for his first flying lessons. Apparently, Harry Potter was a natural flyer. Sirius told Remus and Tonks about the incident involving once again the Malfoy boy. 

‘Instead of causing him grief, that blonde nuisance helped him in obtaining a place on Gryffindor’s team,’ Sirius summarised. 

The librarian having recovered from his previous awkwardness dared a smile. He was happy for the lad. Even though a part of him was nervous about the possibility of the boy getting injured, the other part wanted to cheer for him during his first official game. Tonks felt his apprehension and she laid a hand on his forearm to comfort him.

‘I’m sure he will perform very well and you should not miss on his first time,’ the trainee asserted. 

‘And I wrote to Lily and James. They said they will do everything in their power to be present. Unfortunately, Peter is not reachable but since Harry has not have the opportunity to meet him yet…’ Sirius shrugged. 

‘It’s is such a shame that he disappeared from the map like that,’ Remus touched a itching scar on his neck. ‘We should try to find him.’

Tonks wondered if she should try to convince him to accompany her to the Quidditch match. She wanted to attend the event but would rather not have to spend three whole hours besides her fellow trainees. Despite the fact he would sometimes gently put his hand on her shoulder or her back, Charlie had made it clear that he was not interested in a romantic relationship with her. She was not familiar with the other young apprentices and so, was hoping to spend some time with Remus outside of a teacher-student context. 

Over the last weeks she had grown accustomed to work along the librarian. She was used to his mannerisms and she had learnt about his favourite novels, his love of chocolate and he had even told her some anecdotes on his time at Hogwarts. Tonks was curious about seeing Remus surrounded by his long-time friends. She wanted to understand whether he was naturally quiet and shy or if he was acting bashful only with her around. She knew he was sensitive to loud noises and expected attending a match in the Quidditch pitch was not the best thing for his eardrums. She was ready to bet he would try muffling down the sounds with some kind of charm.  

‘Remus, I’ll hold your hand if you get too nervous about your nephew falling down his broom,’ she teased him with a shaking smile. 

She had realised and had been forced to admit to herself that she might be developing a vain crush on her mentor. She certainly had not told anyone, especially not her mother or her cousin. And she kept reminding herself that the goal of her presence at Hogwarts was to learn about a librarian’s job. Not to learn about the librarian himself. However, she could not help herself; her last serious relationship went back to more than two years and she liked Remus. 

He was the first man she had an interest in and he was the opposite of any other crushes she had previously had. He was quiet, gentle and could be incredibly cute. But she feared he might refuse to accompany her if he detected something other than a passive interest on her part. From the corner of her eyes she thought she could see her cousin’s lopsided smile.

The librarian pondered her declaration while drinking from his almost empty mug and nodded slowly. ‘Alright,’ he complied and threw a quick look at her. ‘I will go to Harry’s game. Make sure to tell me when Lily and James will be there. I want to ask Lily something.’

\---***---***---***---

The Quidditch game happened to be on the last day of the month. Tonks had promised to pick up her mentor at his office one hour before the throwing of the quaffle by Professor Hooch. They would walk together and join Sirius and Harry’s parents to the pitch. 

She arrived on time at the library, it was almost empty for the exception of a few students sitting on their own. She knocked softly on Remus’ door. She called his name when he did answer. Tonks pushed the door open and hurried to the desk when she saw how peaky he looked. His green eyes appeared unfocused and his cheeks were devoid of colour. The first gust of wind would achieve in knocking him over. She was tempted to put her hand on his forehead and to check if he had a fever.

The trainee sat in front of her mentor and waited for him to acknowledge her. He was reading one of the new Muggle books from the latest order he had received. He had decided to accumulate them on his already messy working surface.  She was relieved to see him put away his reading material in the pocket of his robes. 

‘Is it time already?’ he inquired having obviously lost track of time while reading.

‘Yes, it is. Sirius is waiting for us at the pitch. He sent me an owl to remind me of telling you Harry’s parents would be sitting next to him in the bleachers. I was also told that my job would be to try and keep you from going back to the library to hide,’ she added clearly amused. 

If he had felt better, she knew he would have chuckled but he only nodded vaguely interested in what she was saying. She had never seen him that tired and she was now really worried about his health. Could she do anything to help him? She wanted to ask him if he needed anything but knowing how proud a man he was, she did not want him to take offence. 

‘Do you need to go by your quarters and grab anything before we head downstairs?’ she cautiously phrased. 

He shook his head and followed her out of the tiny office. She locked the door with her own set of keys. Every Quidditch matches days, the library temporarily closed. They politely asked the remaining students to leave and promised to be back after the game. On their way out, Tonks’ foot bumped into the leg of a stray chair and Remus caught her by the elbow before she ended up with her nose on the stone floor. She gratefully thanked him and tried to morph her blush away. She did not want him to think of her as a foolish girl with a crush on her mentor, which in retrospective, she was. 


	9. Chapter 9

The librarian and his trainee arrived at the pitch barely ten minutes before the inauguration of the Quidditch season. The towers housing the bleachers were crowded out. Students were shouting and waving banners to cheer for their favourite teams. Gryffindor supporters had hung many colourful flags on their own wooden tower. Most of the young people present were dressed in red and gold to advertise the team’s colours. Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff pupils were majoritarily encouraging Gryffindor. Despite the uneven distribution of the supporters, Slytherin house was shouting as loud as the other houses and their partisans were wearing surly expressions on their faces. 

Up in the staff’s bleachers, situated in front of the Slytherin’s tower, all of the professors and the other members of the staff were ready to watch the game. The new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher was seated next to the Potions master who was accompanied by Professor McGonagall. The heads of today’s playing teams had made their usual wagers and were both expecting their own students to win. While Severus Snape was openly brooding, Minerva McGonagall was positively grinning. 

She had witnessed the extraordinary feat of her new seeker. She had been the one to ask him to accompany her to meet Oliver Wood, this year’s Quidditch captain. She would always remember young Harry Potter’s surprised face when he realised that instead of being scolded, he was being rewarded for his natural talent. He had insisted on sending an owl to his parents as soon as he was officially put on the team.

There were two free seats remaining when the librarian and his trainee reached the top of their designated bleachers. They had climbed up the stairs in a hurry as to not miss the beginning of the match and Tonks had been worried that Remus would collapse before they could make it to their seats. He nonetheless was able to take his place on the bench. As soon as he was seated, he had rest his back against the backrest. 

Sirius and Harry’s parents had kept two spaces empty on purpose. James, who was sitting next to Hogwarts’ buyer, greeted them with a lopsided grin while wiping the specks of dirt from his rectangular glasses. His wife Lily stood up at his right to kiss Tonks on the cheeks and express her pleasure at finally meeting her. She then brushed back a stray lock of light brown hair that was hanging limply on Remus’ forehead who muttered his thanks before sitting down next to her. Tonks took the last empty seat situated on her mentor’s left. 

‘I am so glad to finally meet you,’ Lily said to Tonks who had to gracelessly lean over Remus without falling down on the spectator in front of her. 

The librarian was seated between the two women and was doing his best to ignore the clamour growing stronger and stronger. He was trying to listen to his fellow Marauders’ conversation. He had offered Tonks to switch seat but she had assured him she was comfortable where she was. She did not mind him keeping his place so he could talk with his long time friends. She also had a better view of the pitch where she was since Professor Snape was just in front of him and he would have obstructed her view.

‘The pleasure is all mine,’ Tonks replied politely to Lily. ‘Remus and Sirius told me a lot about your time at Hogwarts. And I had the occasion to meet with your son Harry. He’s a great boy.’

‘You must be informed about what happened to us ten years ago...’ Lily prudently asked. The pink-haired young woman confirmed she was. ‘We tried to shelter Harry from the wizarding world as much as we could. We could not bring ourselves to raise him and tell him all about what really happened that night. We did not want him to feel like an outcast, you see.’

‘I think you did your best considering the situation. And he turned out well, did he not?’ the trainee encouraged the other woman. ‘And also, I would not consider it a flaw for a first-year student not to know everything about magic. My parents kept me from knowing too much when I was a girl. However this might have to do with their secret fear of getting accidentally hexed.’

Sirius interrupted his discussion with James and Remus to insert his own thoughts about why Andromeda and Ted Tonks had avoided teaching their clumsy daughter too many spells or charms. ‘Believe it or not, Lily,’ he said, ‘this young gal here is quite mischievous.’

‘Well, you two are blood-related, so that does not come as a surprise,’ James teased. 

As Remus was preparing to add his own thoughts on the matter, an ear-splitting sound made everyone cringe. The librarian covered his ears and bent his head towards his knees as if it would help cease the noise. Tonks was immediately remembered of his sensitivity to high-pitched noises. He had told her about it during her first week of training. She quickly cast a noise-cancelling charm around him and it instantly took effect. Her mentor let his hands drop from his head with a deep sigh and straightened his back. He looked at Lily thinking she was the one who had cast it, but she shook her head in the negative and indicated the young woman on his other side. Remus turned to Tonks and smiled approvingly at her.

‘It was just the Quidditch commentator adjusting the sound level on his microphone,’ she told him. 

‘Thank you for casting the noise-cancelling charm. I should have thought about it earlier but my mind was on something else,’ he explained. ‘My ears are annoyingly partial to loud noises.’

The young woman wondered whether she could ask him if it had always been so but she hesitated. Everyone’s attention was then called to the centre of the pitch. Madam Hooch was hovering in the middle of the Quidditch playing ground. In half-circle formation on her right was everyone from Slytherin’s team and on her left were the Gryffindors. Harry was sitting on his broom, his back to the staff’s bleachers. Tonks easily recognised him since he was by far the smallest player on the field. 

The Golden snitch was released, closely followed by the Quaffle which was magically sent flying high in the sky. The largest of all the balls came down fast, aimed at the ground. One of Slytherin’s players caught it in his hand and stuck it right under his arm. He flew straight to his opponents’ goals but his run was cut short by a well-aimed bludger that missed him by an inch. In his surprise, the player dropped the Quaffle and Gryffindor’s team effortlessly grabbed it, reached the end of the field and scored ten points. 

Sirius and James joyfully cried out to Gryffindor and clapped each other on the back to celebrate the first points of the season. Lily patted her friend Severus Snapes’ shoulder when she heard him grumble in front of her. Tonks on the other hand was preoccupied by Remus who had closed his eyes and was looking very haggard. She tried catching Lily’s attention but the woman was busy with trying to cheer up her childhood’s friend. 

‘Remus,’ Tonks hesitantly put her hand on his forearm. ‘Are you okay?’

He opened his eyes and appeared lost for an instant. He quickly recovered and stifled a yawn behind his hand. ‘Don’t worry, Nymphadora,’ he replied, ‘I’m just a bit tired. It happens sometimes.’

He was obviously not feeling his best and so she let him use her first name. It also curiously did not sound as annoying as it normally did when anyone else was pronouncing it. ‘If you want to go back to the castle, just tell me, I will keep you company on the way back,’ she declared. 

He squeezed her hand, which she had left on his forearm, and smiled at her. He thanked her for the offer but he insisted he did not want to miss Harry’s first game. They turned their attention back to the game just on time to see Slytherin scoring their first points. A collective disappointed sigh escaped from everyone except the green and silver supporters. It was cut short however when the crowd noticed the two seekers suddenly flying towards Hufflepuff’s bleachers. 

It appeared that one of the seekers had found the snitch. Tonks felt Remus tense as he tightened his grip on her hand. Lily and James held their breath as their son angled his broom towards the sky and followed the Golden snitch while bumping shoulders with his opponent. The Slytherin appeared unperturbed by the close contact. Sirius pulled out a pair of binoculars and commented on the action that quickly became hard to follow for the naked eye. After two or three minutes, the seekers came back to a more reasonable height. They seemed to have lost the flying ball.

‘Well, that’s disappointing,’ Tonks declared on behalf of her companions. ‘Were you not hoping they would have caught it by now?’

She expected an answer from her mentor but when she turned to him, she was surprised to notice he had fallen asleep. His eyes were closed and his hand had slipped from hers. In the excitement, she had not felt it loosened its grasp. Slytherin supporters suddenly let out a loud cry of approval when a bludger hit the Gryffindor captain in the chest and made him fall off his broom. Tonks peered at Remus’ face and frowned when he did not wake up at the cries of protestation coming from James and Sirius. 

‘I think he might still be under that silencing charm you cast earlier,’ Lily told her. She had witnessed the trainee’s confusion and attempted to help her figure out why Remus Lupin remained impervious to the noise. ‘I would let him sleep if it were you, the full…’

Before she could finish her sentence, Sirius swiftly touched her shoulder and shook his head. Lily Potter raised an eyebrow but understood; Remus apparently had not told his trainee about his condition yet. Harry’s mother sighed and explained to Tonks that Remus probably had had a bad night and needed some more sleep. The two women threw a quick look to their companion and returned their attention to the game.

Since they were sitting in the back row, the librarian had leaned his head against the backboards of his seat. It looked uncomfortable and his neck would probably be sore when he would wake up. Tonks decided to put her arm around him and gently grabbed his shoulder to make his head rest on her shoulder so it would be more cozy. Instinctively, Remus nuzzled her neck and let out a deep and warm breath that made her shiver. She could not help it; she was definitely growing attached to this man.    

\---***---***---***---

Gryffindor won the first game of the season and Professor Snape lost his wager against his fellow teacher. He quickly said his goodbyes to Lily and disappeared from the bleachers but not without making his black robes dramatically billow around his legs. Most of the staff quickly followed him down the tower to head back to the castle.

‘What a creep,’ murmured Padfoot to Prongs. Both Marauders started laughing as if they were still Hogwarts students. Lily rolled her eyes in disapproval and suggested that they go meet Harry who was celebrating his victory with his team. They turned to where the librarian and Sirius’ cousin were seating. ‘Let’s wake Moony first.’ 

‘Oh, isn’t it cute?’ The spectacles wearing man teased when he noticed his friend still asleep against Tonks’ shoulder.

‘He has not been feeling well this last couple of days,’ Sirius mentioned. ‘I guess it’s that time of the month again. It seems like it’s getting harder on him as the years go by.’

‘If only he was not so proud,’ Lily sighed. ‘He could ask for help and I’m sure anyone would be glad to provide him. He deserves it so much.’

The bleachers were now almost empty and Tonks was listening to the three friends conversation without understanding a bit of what they were saying. What time of the month, she wondered. Remus was still fast asleep and she had remained as still as humanly possible during the game. She had not cancelled her charm yet and so he was unaware of the concerned faces of his friends. Even Sirius who was usually ever so noisy kept his voice to a respectable volume. Lily sat back down and warmly smiled at the trainee and her mentor.

‘We’re going to talk with Harry, do you want to accompany us?’ she offered Tonks. 

‘Sure, I want to congratulate him on his great catch,’ the trainee answered. ‘And maybe I’ll suggest him not to swallow the snitch every game. It can’t be healthy.’

Sirius and James laughed. ‘I like this girl,’ James said to his friend.

‘It’s the Black humour surfacing,’ Sirius replied with a smirk. ‘Let’s wake Sleeping Beauty so we can meet with the boy before his friends take him back to celebrate.’

Tonks nodded and removed the noise-cancelling charm from around Remus. The sandy-haired man frowned in his sleep and tried to burrow his face against the side of her neck. His hair tickled her and she was dying to stretch her back. 

‘Remus, let’s wake up,’ she touched his shoulder in a failed attempt to bring him back from the dreaming world. 

He seemed to whimpered small protests as Lily touched his cheek.

‘Come on, Remmy,’ she pressed him. ‘Tonks here would like to stretch her legs a bit.’

Upon hearing his trainee’s name, the librarian unexpectedly startled and removed his face from where it was pillowed in Tonks’ shoulder. It would have been funny had he not looked so mortified. He threw an embarrassed look at his trainee and muttered his unease at having fallen asleep against her.

‘How long was I gone?’ he worried. 

‘Oh, only for the duration of the whole game,’ Sirius said with a slight smirk. ‘Comfy, were you?’

‘I’m never going to live that down, am I?’ Moony sighed and stood up to follow his friends down the tower. 

‘Never!’ came the reply from the other Marauders. 

Lily straightened the freshly woken man’s shirt collar before slipping her hand in her husband’s. The Potters took the lead, in a hurry to go meet their son. Sirius sent Remus a cryptic smile before catching up with the couple. Tonks lingered in the back, clearly not knowing what to do next. She had enjoyed being given the opportunity to offer her mentor some time to relax and it had been beneficial for him since some of his natural colour had replaced the previous pallor in his cheeks. 

‘So…’ he began not quite looking her in the eyes. ‘Do you want to meet Harry?’

She was relieved to notice he did not seem to be angry or upset with her. She had the fleeting and unreasonable impression that their relationship might have been affected by this incident and she did not want him to avoid her from now on. She did not want to blow her chances at remaining paired with him for her traineeship. She knew she had been a spectator of one of his moments of vulnerability, and as Lily had told her earlier, Remus was a proud man. He would not allow his shell to crack so easily in front of people he did not know perfectly well or trusted for that matter.

‘I can’t wait to meet this little prodigy,’ she stated and accompanied him to the exit. All seemed well.

\---***---***---***---

Harry was sitting precariously on the Weasley twins’ shoulders when his parents reached him. Hermione and Ron were standing nearby, waiting their turn to cheer with their friend. When the young seeker saw his parents approaching on the field, he hurriedly jumped from his makeshift pedestal and ran towards them. His mother hugged him against her and his father rumpled his hair while congratulating him on his first game. Sirius teasingly dragged the hood of his Quidditch robes on his head and smiled proudly at his godson. Tonks and Remus arrived after the reunion and they each offered their felicitations to Harry. 

‘I’m sure you’ll grow to be an amazing seeker, laddie,’ Remus calmly observed. ‘I saw how great your father was on a broom and I bet you’ll measure up quite easily.’

‘Thanks, Uncle Remus!’ the boy smiled widely. He turned to his parents. ‘I didn’t know you were allowed to come and watch the game.’

‘Sirius wrote us when you made the team,’ his father explained. ‘And Professor McGonagall was quite insistent that we should come and support you for your first game.’

‘She is really nice,’ Harry nodded his approval. He turned to Sirius, ‘Did you know, she turns into a cat!’ 

‘Yes, she’s an animagus like your Dad and I,’ Sirius laughed. 

The boy turned his attention back to his parents. ‘I’m glad to see you. Are you staying the night?’

Lily and James answered at the same time that they had to leave after dinner. James had been requested for a special Auror operation; something to do with a case long closed that had been reopened. As for Lily, she was scheduled to work during the weekend at St-Mungos. They needed her help on a new healing potion they had recently developed. Harry looked disappointed but quickly pushed his disappointment aside by waving at his two companions who were standing behind, waiting to be introduced. 

‘Mum, Dad,’ Harry said, ‘Meet Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley.’

The first-year politely greeted the Potters and a few minutes later asked their permission to borrow Harry so they could go and celebrate their victory with the rest of the house. The dark haired boy sworn he would meet them the adults for dinner tonight. The three students promptly joined the rest of the Quidditch players still on the field.

Once the young seeker had gone away with his friends, Tonks announced she had some catching up to do with Charlie Weasley. He had told her he needed her help in filling up some forms regarding their traineeship. She shook hands with James and hugged Lily. She stole a glance at Remus and wondered whether she should reiterate her offer to accompany him back to the library. She noticed some colour seemed to have made it back to his naturally pale cheeks and she thought sleeping during the match might have helped with his exhaustion. She decided not to fuss too much over him and said she would meet them in the Great Hall again tonight. 

Sirius and James suggested that they go and spend some time at the Three Broomsticks. Lily was not too keen on the idea because she had previously accepted to have tea with Severus to catch up on the last few months. Upon Remus’ pleading look, she accepted to follow the Marauders to Hogsmeade. She declared she would remain at the pub only if Sirius and James behaved and not act as if they were back to school again. Remus chuckled quietly and murmured she should not get her hopes high. 

All four of them began walking towards the village and while Sirius and James were discussing Quidditch strategies, Remus intentionally hung at the back with Lily. He wanted her opinion on some personal matter that had begun troubling him a few days back. He did not trust Sirius enough to keep his mouth shut and so Lily, with her kind sensibility, would be more apt to shed some light on his dilemma. She was glad she could get to help him some way and she made sure her husband and Sirius were out of earshot before inquiring about Remus’ problem. 

‘So, you see,’ the brown haired man cleared his throat. ‘Er… You’ve met Nymphadora Tonks.’

‘Yes, she is very lovely,’ Lily smiled. She had a feeling she knew where the conversation was heading. 

‘Well, that is the problem,’ he let out in one breath. He cursed his cheeks which were burning hot and betraying his bashfulness. 

‘How is that a problem?’

‘I… she’s intelligent, quite beautiful and very… very…’ he struggled to find the words. 

‘She’s your trainee and you don’t want to be inappropriate.’

‘Yes, but at the same time… I wish I had someone like you and James have each other.’ He sighed and scratched the back of his neck. ‘I know I can’t have children but…’ 

‘Why are you saying that?’ Lily did a double turn and stopped him in his tracks. ‘Lycanthropy isn’t genetically transmitted.’ 

Remus frowned and a sudden burst of anger ignited in his chest. He wanted to curse the monster who had robbed him from his normalcy and who had made him a beast. Deep inside, he had always wanted to take revenge on this Greyback. He had once had a nightmare in which they were fighting until one of them finally yield to the other. The lycanthropy had kept him from having a normal life. He did not dare dream about the day a woman would take him as her husband. He would never want to risk having children cursed like him.

‘You can’t know that, no werewolf has ever reproduced under its human form. No one would be stupid enough to try,’ he snapped at Lily and immediately regretted it. 

The woman did not take offence. She knew how the illness affected him. She had always been there for him since they had met ten years ago at Hogwarts. She had spend long rounds with him when they were prefects and they had talked about classes, books and anything that popped in their minds. They had become each others’ confidantes. 

Everytime the other Marauders were too involved in their pranks, Remus had preferred spending time with her. He was a tortured soul and she had sworn to always be there to comfort him in his worst moments. They both knew those grey days were more frequent whenever the full moon was less than a week away; he would get exhausted easily and his emotions would be stronger. 

Lily hugged him when she realised he was on the brinks of tears. She held him in her arms, murmuring words of comfort when she felt him shuddering. It was not the first time they ended up in this position and she knew he needed it terribly. Back when they were still prefects, he had once talked to her about how physical contacts had been scarce when he was a boy. Despite stating they still loved their son, the Lupins had gradually distanced themselves from him. Their relationship had changed over time as he had grown more powerful with age. His werewolf abilities had frightened them and even though they had denied being afraid of him, Remus always could smell their fear. 

‘Remmy,’ Lily let him go and wiped his tears from his downcast eyes. He was ashamed of crying because of a matter that seemed so futile. ‘If you believe a relationship with Nymphadora could make you happy, you should go for it. Trainee or not, don’t wait until it’s too late before acting upon your feelings.’

‘Do you think she’s too young?’ he pushed back his fringe from his eyes and his finger lingered on the pale scars on his forehead.

‘If feelings are reciprocated, I don’t think you should let the age factor distract you. She’s old enough to make her own decisions, and she strikes me as a very mature young woman,’ Lily assured her friend. 

The red haired woman tugged on the sleeve of his patched robes and he offered her his arm. She put her hand on the crook of his elbow and insisted they resume walking. He obediently fell into step next to her. They quickly caught up with the two men who were waiting for them at the gates of the village. 

‘There still is one problem,’ he murmured with some hesitation. ‘Dating is not my  _ forte _ and I wouldn’t know where to begin.’

‘Offer her to have tea with you outside working hours, or invite her for a stroll. You’ll know where you stand,’ the woman wisely offered him.   

Remus nodded and his customary quietness returned. He thought about a way to ask Tonks to accompany him for a short walk, maybe outside the castle grounds as to avoid bumping into any acquaintances, and especially Charlie Weasley. 

Lily implored him to write to her about future developments. It was not the first time she insisted that he asked some girl out. When they were prefects, he had had a few opportunities to which he had remained oblivious. He had always pretended she was hallucinating these girls being supposedly enamoured with him. He had once said it was probably over James or Sirius that they were mooning over.  

This time however, he could not deny the attraction he felt towards Nymphadora Tonks and it was clear that the feelings were reciprocated. It was just a matter of time before they admitted it, Lily thought.  


End file.
